Harry Potter and the Lantrisi
by JohnDeath
Summary: Harry Potter disappeared on that fateful Halloween night. When he returns, years later, the whole world will be in for a surprise.
1. Chapter 1

**After several requests and considerations, I have decided to rewrite this story. Updates will be irregular, but I hope that this time, the story will be much better.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter  
**

**Chapter 1**

"So, this is Earth, huh?" A tall man with messy black hair and vibrant green eyes murmured to himself as he stood on the edge of a large forest. A large castle could be seen nearby, as well as a large lake.

"You have landed safely, Nihtar Daroth?" A voice echoed from the watch on his wrist.

"I have. Though I have to ask if we calculated the temporal coordinates properly. This place does not look like the late 20th century." The newly named Daroth sighed.

"Our sensors confirm this is the correct age. Perhaps they are incapable of insulating electronics against magic." The woman on the other side replied in a calm tone.

"Perhaps. You should head back now, Arella. I can take care of myself." Daroth assured the woman and closed the connection.

* * *

Quickly scanning the area, he turned towards the castle, but he had taken only a few steps before his body froze in place.

Cursing himself for not checking for magical defenses, he didn't have to wait long before someone came to investigate.

Two humans, one a very old man with long white beard and extremely odd robes, and an older woman dressed conservatively.

"It can't be. James?" The woman gasped as they saw the person trapped by the school's intruder wards.

"Not quite." Daroth grinned lightly and the two humans noticed his bright green eyes.

"Harry? It's a miracle." The woman exclaimed in both shock and happiness.

"He does look like him, but he's also older than Harry would have been." The old man commented.

"And how old am I supposed to be?" Daroth asked.

"Fifteen this July 31." The woman replied.

Daroth's body began to flow, resembling molten wax and moments later, the young man turned into a teenager.

"Problem solved." He grinned at their shocked faces.

"That wasn't a metamorphomagus shift." As the two greatest minds in the field of Transfiguration, the pair realized this immediately.

"That was Form Dancing. Now, could you get me out of this trap, my legs are getting numb."

"I don't want to risk letting a potential enemy into my school." The old man said with a slight frown.

"I swear I am not here to do harm to you or this school. I just want some questions answered." Daroth said firmly.

"Very well." The old man waved the wand in his hand and Daroth could move again. "Follow us, please."

* * *

Five minutes later, Daroth was in a lavishly decorated office, staring curiously at the all sorts of magical items throughout the room.

"Now, I will answer your questions, but I expect the same in turn." The man, who had introduced himself as Albus Dumbledore said as they all sat down.

"Fair enough. I have three questions. First, is my father alive? From what few memories I managed to recall, I know my mother died." Daroth began.

"Alas, I fear he too fell the night when you disappeared." Dumbledore said sadly.

"I expected as much. Second, what has happened to my family holdings? Were they seized after I couldn't be found?" He continued.

"No. The goblins of Gringotts were adamant that the Potter family assets remain untouched. You may lay claim to them after you have proven to them you truly are Harry Potter." Dumbledore replied, adding an explanation about what Gringotts and the goblins were.

"My last question is about the man that attacked my family that night. Who is he, and is he still alive?" Daroth's eyes gained a sharp glint as he asked this.

"He calls himself Lord Voldemort, but his name is Tom Riddle. And yes, he still lives. The night when you disappeared, he too was defeated, and he was gone for thirteen years, but it seems he was not completely destroyed, because mere months ago, he returned. I had little hope before you miraculously returned to us." Dumbledore smiled at Daroth as he finished.

"I'll make sure to make his second life a bitter one. Now, you have questions for me?" Daroth smirked evilly.

"For starters, where have you been all this time?" Dumbledore asked.

"That is a long story. It all began with a picnic…"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

It was a nice quiet day in park 246 on Hashera, the capitol planet of the Lantrisi Collective. There were few people around, and little noise save for the faint rustling of the leaves in the many trees. Under one of those trees, a young couple sat, taking advantage of the good weather and the few people around by having a picnic.

The man looked to be in good shape, with short brown hair and a kind and gentle face, while the woman had shoulder-length fiery red hair and a sharp face, while her body showed signs of heavy training.

Slowly, the wind shifted, and with it, came a scent that made the couple pause in their meal. Quickly, they went to investigate and what they found shocked them to the core. There, near the roots of one of the many trees lay a sleeping baby. The source of the strongest scent was the small scar on his head that had only just begun to heal.

"Felar is that…" The woman spoke, still shocked by this discovery. A human hadn't set foot on Hashera in almost a thousand years, not since the Lantrisi separated themselves from the Alliance. Shortly afterwards, the Terrans and the rest of the Alliance declared war on them for use of banned technology, and had remained in conflict with them ever since.

"It's a human infant, alright. But how did he get here? This will cause quite a stir, Andrussa." Felar sighed.

He turned inwards, towards the Great Link, the massive psychic connection all Lantrisi were connected to like a massive computer network. It was much more than that, but its primary function was to provide communication between them.

'Class one emergency. Requesting instructions.' He sent into the Link, and moments later, the node commander for his section of the Hierarchy, their society structure responded.

'Felar, you better have a good reason for declaring a class one emergency.' The man said with a firm tone.

'This is a private connection?' Felar asked.

'As protocol demands. Now, what's the trouble?' The man sounded annoyed at the question.

'My wife and I found a human infant in park 264.' Felar replied, already feeling the disbelief of his superior.

'If this is a joke…' The man growled. The last person who called a class one as a joke spent two weeks in the hands of the Order of Death as a test subject for new torture methods.

'I would never do something like that.' Felar replied firmly.

'I will pass the alert on.' The node commander sighed and cut the connection.

* * *

Moments later, a new voice echoed in his head, and it made him shiver, because it was the voice of Lanus Deathhand, his clan leader, head of the Collective and the progenitor of their race.

'Felar, bring the child to the Skull Temple. You will be given further instructions once you arrive.'

Shaking off the shock, he picked up the child and together with his wife, hurried to the nearest displacement facility.

The Lantrisi had great dislike for teleportation technology, calling any device that vaporized the user crude and ill conceived. They had toiled hard until they developed tachyon displacement field technology, devices that moved the user through space without affecting the user in any way. Its sole drawback was the higher power requirements, but in contrast, it was also a lot harder to shield against.

* * *

The Skull Temple, home of the legendary Order of Death, the elite Lantrisi spies, saboteurs and assassins was a vast and ominous structure that few non-members visited willingly.

"This way. Lord Deathhand awaits you." The pair were shocked by that, but followed the man who greeted them at a brisk pace.

They arrived in one of the Order's laboratories, where they met not only Lord Deathhand, but also his daughter Sophia, the High Master of the Order of Death and the second best fighter in the entire Collective after her father, of course. The pair could have passed for twins. They were tall, with midnight black hair, which in Sophia's case went to the middle of her back. They had sharp, predatory faces, with dark piercing eyes that seemed to peer right into your soul.

"Run a full scan, Sophia." Lord Deathhand instructed and the infant was quickly placed on a scanner table, where powerful sensors analyzed every aspect of his being.

"The sensors have detected two unknown energy types. Very similar in structure though, one is radiated by the infant itself, the other comes from the scar on his head." Sophia started reading the reports as they came in.

"Genetic structure, unknown variation of Terran genome." This was followed by a loud gasp.

"The sensors found faint traces of artions." She exclaimed.

"So, our little friend managed to pierce the barriers between the universes and come to us. Interesting." Lord Deathhand stroked his chin.

"What are your orders, father?" Sophia asked.

"Let me see his genetic structure." The man spent a few minutes going over the data.

"Send this to your mother for a more detailed analysis. In the meantime, Felar, Andrussa, I want you two to raise this child until he is old enough to decide if he wishes to become one of us or not. Do you accept?" Lord Deathhand turned to the couple that quietly observed their leaders at work.

"Of course, my Lord. He will be raised well, you have my word on this." Felar replied.

"He needs a name. Considering the scar, I think Daroth (lightning) is appropriate." Sophia grinned, gently tracing the lightning shaped scar on the child's forehead.

* * *

It took the couple a while to get used to caring for a human child, as their own children reached full adulthood in just five short years. Daroth grew up well cared for, if a bit lonely since there were no children to play with. He also showed remarkable intelligence and talent as he learned to speak Alliance standard fluently by the time he was four, and could read plain text by the same age.

However, his fifth birthday was the day that brought a great surprise to his parents and the whole Collective.

Felar had given him a stuffed animal toy for a present; however, Daroth protested that he didn't like the color. Knowing better than to give in to his every whim lest he spoil the boy, Felar insisted that he keep the toy.

Daroth glared at it, angry because he hated the green color of the fur, when suddenly, to Felar's surprise, the toy turned yellow. Daroth seemed happy with this, but Felar was shocked. The toy wasn't supposed to do that. Which meant, Daroth had somehow done it. It was nothing special, but the fact that he had done it in the first place was what shocked him.

* * *

Lord Deathhand had ordered an immediate study in this ability, and after several years of observation and study, they discovered that the unknown energy his body was producing was responsible for this. Somehow, he could utilize this energy to affect change in his surroundings. Detailed experiments showed that he could move objects at will, as well as change their appearance. Also, they discovered that the process was triggered by both emotion and willpower.

Also, they managed to isolate the part of his genetic structure that gave him this ability, and preliminary studies had begun on the topic of giving this ability to Lantrisi volunteers.

* * *

When Daroth turned fourteen, he was deemed old enough to make a decision about joining the Collective, and for that reason, he was brought before Lord Deathhand himself.

"Have a seat, Daroth. How are you today?" Lord Deathhand grinned at the fidgeting boy before him.

"Fine, sir. Thank you for asking." Daroth replied politely.

"Your parents explained the nature of the Lantrisi and the Collective?" Lord Deathhand asked.

"Yes, sir. I always thought vampires were a Terran myth to scare children. Learning I was living on a planet full of them was a shock." Daroth whispered.

"Yes, the Terrans paint us in a very bad light, don't they? Still before the invention of replication technology, we had done many horrible things in order to survive. For this, we were labeled as monsters and hunted as such. Even in this enlightened age, old hatreds still linger." Lord Deathhand sighed.

"But, enough of that. As you know, you have come here from a different universe, and eventually, you will have to go back. As soon as we have the means to do so, we shall return you to your rightful home. However, that day may not come for quite a while, which brings me to the reason why you're here." Lord Deathhand paused at this.

Daroth knew he came to Hashera from another universe, and that his caretakers were not his birth parents, and deep inside, he wanted to know where he came from and what that world was like, but for the most part, he was happy with his life. Now it seemed his return to this unknown universe was only a matter of time.

"I wish to offer you an honor not extended for over five centuries. The chance of becoming a Lantrisi and joining the Collective. You are free to refuse, of course. We will not think any less of you if you do so." Lord Deathhand smiled kindly.

For several minutes Daroth sat frozen, unsure how to reply to this incredible offer. But the more he thought about it, the clearer the choice was.

"I accept." Daroth stood up with a firm look on his face.

"Excellent. Follow me." He led Daroth to one of the Order of Death's interrogation rooms, where Daroth was strapped to a very sturdy table.

* * *

Lord Deathhand took an injection tool and to Daroth's surprise, pressed it to his arm, filling the vial attached to it with his own blood.

"Your own blood, sir?" His parents explained the Hierarchy to him, and how the position of your parent or blood donor in case of transformed Lantrisi determined your position in it. By receiving blood from the primary progenitor, he would be placed on the highest tier of the Hierarchy, equal to the clan leaders and the Deathhand family.

"Your potential would be wasted by any other donor. Now, you will feel some slight burning, followed by unimaginable pain." Lord Deathhand grinned as he injected his blood into Daroth and left the room. True enough, moments later, he felt a burning sensation in his bones. Several minutes later, the sensation grew unbearable. Moments afterwards, the screaming started.

After a while, the pain reached a new peak, causing his vision to darken and moments later, Daroth knew no more.

* * *

Pain. All he could feel was tormenting, all encompassing pain. His entire body felt sore, stinging and aching, while his head felt like being banged into a wall… several thousand times. His throat felt dry and raw, and, still not fully aware of his surroundings, he felt himself lifted up slightly, and something cold was pressed on his lips. He tasted a warm liquid touching them. Acting on instinct, he parted them, allowing the unpleasant fluid to enter his mouth. He grimaced at the taste, but his body continued to drink greedily, ignoring his protests. The metallic tasting fluid seemed familiar as he raked his brain for a memory of it. Suddenly, realization hit him like a ton of bricks. He was drinking blood.

Blearily, he opened his eyes and saw a man holding a metal cylinder to his lips.

The blood seemed to bring some life back into his body, as he started to feel the pain slowly fading.

"Come with me. It's best to sleep for a few hours after the turning to give your body some rest. The turning is a brutal process, and you'll feel it once the high from the blood fades away." He was supported by the man to a nearby room with a small sofa.

"Sleep now. Lord Deathhand will see you when you awaken." The man set him down and left.

* * *

Daroth awoke several hours later, feeling stronger and more alive than ever before.

He walked out, and after finding a guide, he was led back to Lord Deathhand.

"Daroth, good to see you again. Hmm, I'm surprised your scar still remains. Usually the turning corrects such minor damage. But, that's a matter for another time. I have arranged for some living quarters for you, and you can move in after you have developed immunity to sunlight. You can spend the month it takes this learning about your new self from your parents."

"Thank you sir. Anything else?" Daroth asked, noticing the slight change in his voice, as well as the pair of thin, sharp fangs that appeared in his mouth.

"Yes. I want to offer you the chance to join the military training program. With your potential, I am quite confident you'll qualify and pass not only that, but also the officer and advanced officer training. There is also the subject of magic. Once we have examined how your talent has responded to the turning, we can start researching on methods to give this power to others as well. In addition to your training, you will also need to spend time with the research teams to develop means to effectively utilize this power for the benefit of the Collective." Lord Deathhand continued.

"Yes sir. I will not disappoint you." Daroth bowed.

"One other thing. Pending your performance in training and future service record, you might get invited into the Order of Death, first level. For that, however, you'll need to be the best of the best." Lord Deathhand grinned at his shocked face before dismissing him.

* * *

Over the month, Daroth learned a lot about the Lantrisi, starting with their physiology to interstellar politics. The best way to describe a Lantrisi was a tank on legs. They aged until their body reached their early twenties, after which they remained so indefinitely. Their strength was ten times that of humans as was their speed. They healed extremely fast, and were also capable of replacing lost limbs or organs. They were also extremely intelligent, having developed a unique scientific system that had given them a distinct technological advantage over their enemies.

However, for all their superiority, they had weaknesses as well. Their arrogance for starters was one. They often dismissed serious threats as inconsequential, which had cost them on several occasions. Also, their low birthrate and many wars had kept the growth of their territories limited at best. In some areas, the borders hadn't moved in a millennium.

With a sigh, Daroth turned away from the window, feeling the slight warmth of the sunlight on his skin. Tomorrow, he would start his training and for that, he needed his sleep.

AN/ The mega flashback will take another chapter to finish, after which we'll return to Hogwarts and see how Dumbles and McGonagall react. For those interested in the first version, I named Harry's shifting ability shapeshifting (unoriginal, I know). After rereading Dune, I was inspired by Tleilaxu Face Dancers so named it Form Dancing this time. Hope you like the change. Also, I'd like to ask if anyone is willing to draw some art for this fic. Anyone interested PM me. Thanks in advance and hope you enjoy :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Daroth stood in line together with the rest of the new students of the 46th military academy of Hashera. The recruits were divided into two groups, each wearing different uniforms.

The smaller group of about thirty along with Daroth wore black uniforms with red collars, while the other hundred or so, wore black with blue collars.

The instructors before them wore black with gold collars, along with an insignia on their right breast of an open book with two crossed knives over it.

"Welcome everyone, to the military training program. As you can see, you have been divided into two groups. The smaller group of you are the ones that have been recommended for officer training. This is a great privilege, but it is also a responsibility. We will expect more of you, and we'll be far less tolerant for any mistakes.

Your training will start with unarmed combat, which will last for the next ten to fifteen years to give you a proper mastery of the fighting styles as well as your physical ability. The next five years will cover cold melee weapons, after which, we'll start with the various weapons, equipment and vehicles our military has at their disposal. Once you go through all this, you will be soldiers of the Collective. After this, those amongst you still in the officer program will continue on with further instructions. Now divide into groups of six and await your instructor." The chief instructor informed them.

* * *

Daroth quickly moved towards the people closest to him, three more men and two women and awaited their instructor.

"Alright, listen up. The galaxy has thousands of fighting styles, and finding the right one is a problem many people out there face. Not us, though. Our styles fit practically everyone. The first style is the Crushing Fist. It's well rounded, and easy to learn for novices. Once you master this, provided you're good enough, you get to learn the Bloody Claw. This style is more aggressive and takes great skill to master. As for the Shadow Strike, that style is reserved for the Order of Death and is taught by their own instructors. Now, we'll start with the opening stance of the Crushing Fist." The instructor took a stance, after which he observed them and corrected their form.

The training was not just unarmed combat, though. Vast amounts of reading material was assigned to the recruits, covering the theoretical aspects of combat. Things like tactics, logistics, team dynamics, chain of command etc.

* * *

The days on Hashera lasted for 32 standard hours, and this length of time was taken for the standard day in the Collective. Some planets had different local time, but on ships and stations, this was the standard in use.

Daroth's time was stretched thin with sixteen hours spent in the academy in training and study, and another eight in various science labs trying to determine the full potential of his unique ability and how to pass it on to others safely.

Careful study of his genetic structure allowed the scientists to develop a simple process to give this ability to others, but learning how to use it was another thing.

* * *

"You alright, Daroth?" His best friend in the academy, a girl only five years older named Arella asked him.

"Just feeling tired. We hit a dead end in the research yesterday. No matter how hard I try, I can't do anything else besides moving things and making small changes." He sighed.

"Didn't you manage to displace yourself a few days ago?" She reminded him.

Daroth nodded, remembering the day when desperate for something new, managed to displace across the lab. Repeated experiments determined how to do this, and the scientists learned what happened when he did this. It was a crude semblance of the tachyon displacement technology, with a single flaw. The displacement affected the air in both the point of origin and the destination, creating a small thunderclap that caused a loud crack to sound when it was done.

"Yes, but nothing more since." He sighed again.

"Come on then. I can't stand to see you so depressed." Arella pulled him to his feet.

"Where are we going?" He asked.

"My place. You need to cheer up, and I know just the way." She gave him a sly wink.

Several hours later, the two lay in bed, exhausted but feeling much better.

"Thanks, Arella. I really needed that." Daroth pulled her closer to him and gave her a light peck on the cheek.

"What are friends for?" She grinned. "You know, I've been thinking about your trouble. This ability is genetic, right?"

Daroth nodded, curious about her thoughts.

"Well, that means your parents had it too, right? Surely you have some memories of them." She asked.

Daroth wanted to bash his head into the wall. It was so simple. But like they say, the simplest answers are usually the most difficult to spot.

"I'll meditate and see what I can find." Daroth stood up and picked up his clothes. "Thanks again." He gave her another kiss.

* * *

Trying to recall memories of such an early age was beyond difficult. A Lantrisi could recall almost any point of his life starting with a week from birth, but those earliest memories of his life were made while he was still human. After hours of deep meditation, he had managed to gather some unrelated flashes, enough to get him some ideas.

One of the first things he learned was his name and the names of his parents. He was named Harry, and his parents were James and Lily Potter.

He also managed to determine the date of his memories from a glimpse of a calendar, which said August 1981.

The rest were a jumbled mess of scenes and impressions. He saw a man that he felt was a good friend of the family turn himself into a large dog that jumped on his dad and started licking his face, saw his mother mix something in a large cauldron, then, to his excitement, saw his dad take a stick from his pocket and use it to send several books towards a bookshelf. Then, the scene changed, and he saw his mother stand between himself and a man in a dark robe. There was a flash of green and his mother collapsed.

Then, the man pointed the stick at him, and the last thing he remembered before his meditation was broken was a cold, evil voice hiss the words "Avada Kedavra."

* * *

"A what?" The chief scientist, a man called Garshan gave him a strange look.

"A wand. I think it's a focus." Daroth replied.

"A focus, huh? You said it was made of wood, then?" Garshan mused. "I doubt we can make something like that, though. We don't know what type of wood, how it is processed, or whether or not there are other aspects of these wands you didn't manage to recall. Still, something to focus and direct the energy is a good idea. Some sort of metal would be best, I think. We have more experience with metals and it's harder to break a metal wand. We'll probably have something for you in a week or two. Until then, there's no reason to bother you."

Feeling grateful for the unexpected free time, as well as the recent progress in the project, Daroth returned to his military training with renewed zeal.

* * *

His friendship with Arella grew, but they both realized that neither wanted to start a relationship at this stage of their lives. There was still the casual sex between them, but to Lantrisi, sex didn't have the same taboo most races had for it.

One night stands were quite common, as well as multiple partners. The older Lantrisi who had developed and mastered the art of Form Dancing, an advanced skill that allowed them to change their bodies at will were known to change genders when they grew bored with the one they held at the moment.

* * *

"We have something for you." Two weeks later, he was once again meeting Garshan. On the table before him were three metal wands ten inches in length. Two of them were silvery, while the third was a light, almost white golden color.

"This one first. Focus on releasing light from it." Daroth did so, and a strong but narrow beam of light burst forth.

"Excellent. Now the second." This time, the beam was over a foot wide, and Daroth had to narrow his eyes to shield them from the brightness.

"Here, put these on and use the third." Daroth's eyebrow rose when he was handed a pair of welder's goggles. Those were used with plasma welders and they glowed bright enough to completely burn out your retinas. If this happened to a Lantrisi, he had to have the eyeballs removed so new ones could grow in their place.

The beam of light engulfed the whole room and could easily be seen through the goggles. In fact, Daroth had to close his eyes even with them.

"Alright, let me explain these wands. After a lot of experiments with different alloys, we found these two. The first we called mithril, and it has the ability to conduct the energy you produce with almost no losses. The wand is processed in a way to direct the energy from the handle to the tip.

The second metal we called arcanite, and unlike the first, it's not a conductor, but an amplifier. We still don't know the reasons why, but it can boost the power put into it a hundredfold, and the more you use, the bigger the boost. This second wand has a small piece of it encased inside the tip, which should give you not only focus, but also a reasonable boost to your power. The last wand is not practical; we just wanted to see what would happen." Garshan grinned.

* * *

As if a dam had burst, with the new wands, the Lantrisi had advanced this branch of science in an astounding pace. They developed new and more complex ways to change objects, even living to non-living and vice versa, as well as conjuring objects and creatures from thin air. An accidental discovery led to the discovery of enchantment. Pouring energy into a written word gave power to it. Immediately, vast writing for protection, shielding and strengthening were engraved into all their ships, then charged using large arcanite wands. This tripled the defensive power of the already incredibly tough Lantrisi ships, giving them the breathing room they needed.

* * *

While all this went on, Daroth had finished his full military training, as well as his officer and commander training. Thanks to his exemplary results, he was given the rank of Datak and command of one of the new Koraash carriers along with command of the 32 Fleet that patrolled one part of their borders with the Baroth Syndicate.

The Syndicate was a loosely tied band of large tribes of pirates, mercenaries and raiders, and were the only race that traded with the Lantrisi. They also often launched raiding parties in their territories, looking for targets of opportunity, hoping to score advanced weapons or technology.

Daroth, now a century old, spent over fifty years hunting raiders all over his assigned area, as well as numerous other missions, ranging from escort duty to scientific research.

His performance had quickly earned him the rank of Nihtar, an astounding accomplishment for one as young as him.

* * *

Now, however, his Lord had asked him to come back to Hashera. His friend Arella had joined his staff right after they graduated, and had risen to his executive officer over the years. After consulting with Fleet Command, Daroth took no small pleasure in promoting her to Datak and giving her command of the 32 Fleet.

"Daroth, it is good to see you again. Years ago, I promised you that you would one day be given the opportunity to join the Order of Death. That day is today. Once you have completed your training, I want you to organize the Order's mages into a new chapter with you as the commander. Do you accept?" This shocked Daroth. This was an unexpected honor.

"I would be honored, sir." He bowed deeply.

"Ah and here comes your new superior. I don't believe you've met my daughter Sophia have you?" Lord Deathhand grinned.

Daroth turned, and his body froze. The most beautiful woman he had ever seen just walked in the room, moving with ethereal grace. Her midnight black hair swayed gently as she moved, only increasing her allure. A perfect face, with sharp, predatory lines enhanced it even further.

"Hello, Daroth. You sure have grown since I last saw you." She replied in a melodious voice.

"It is an honor to meet you, milady." Daroth bowed, gently kissing her offered hand.

"The honor is all mine, Daroth. Come with me, I'll take you to the Skull Temple." She informed him. Lord Deathhand watched them leave, a strange smirk adorning his face.

* * *

Training for the Order went beyond extreme and brutal. The Shadow Strike was a fighting style that demanded extreme precision and control of one's body, and their infiltration and assassination techniques took decades to fully master. Also, the Order members were heavily trained in interrogation and ways to resist it, which meant suffering long and excruciatingly painful torture sessions that were designed to increase their pain tolerance.

Daroth trained for centuries, finally completing his training and creating the Mage chapter of the Order.

During this time, it came to quite a surprise of several people when he and Sophia Deathhand got together. Daroth found her to be a kind and gentle soul, and he had grown to love her deeply.

A surprise for all was when he developed the Form Dancing ability, five centuries earlier than he should have. It turned out that some genes related to his magical genes gave him a mild ability to alter his appearance. This rather limited gift was used by the Lantrisi DNA to complete the data for the Form Dancing early.

A unique property of their DNA was the fact that it was incomplete. A rather complex structure of four double helixes, the DNA slowly added new information or rewrote old data as they aged, which was why older Lantrisi had advanced abilities like Form Dancing and a very mild gift with telekinesis, and also why the older one got, the stronger and tougher one became.

* * *

Daroth had passed well over six hundred when experiments using various branches of science managed to create the means to send him to his own world. They did not want to send him away just like that, but it was found that there was a pull from his home universe at all times around him.

"I am sad to see you go, Daroth. You have given the Collective a lot. Many will miss you." Lord Deathhand embraced him before Daroth would depart for his home universe.

"I will miss you as well, my Lord." Daroth managed to suppress the tears.

"You will not go unequipped into this world. I prepared this for you." Lord Deathhand gave him a watch.

"It uses the flat space technology we developed recently. It contains three singularity generators for charging, fifty feeding units, twenty Decimator pistols and ten rifles, as well as four Reaper sniper rifles with five thousand rounds for them. I also added a hundred plasma grenades and twenty antimatter demolition charges."

"Be prepared for anything, huh?" Daroth grinned at the massive arsenal on his wrist. That was enough to obliterate a large garrison. On the planet where he was going, it was beyond overkill.

"I never thought I'd see Earth without over twenty Alliance ships shooting at me." Arella grinned.

"It is an interesting sight, alright. I guess I have no choice, then. Locate the largest magical area in Britain and send me down." Daroth sighed, preparing himself for life on a human infested world.

AN: This concludes the mega flashback, and from the next chapter, Harry will deal with the hordes of adoring fans and people trying to discover his past. The flat space technology was borrowed from Ultraviolet, it was just too cool not to :)


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"That was quite the story, and if I hadn't seen proof, I would have been hesitant to believe it. The question that remains is what do you plan to do now?" Dumbledore said with a tired tone as the sun's first rays rose over the distant hills.

It was late afternoon when the story began, and it seemed they had stayed up all night, caught in Daroth's captivating tale.

"I don't know, really. I'd like to reclaim my family assets, for starters, and see to it that the man who killed my parents meets a slow and painful death. I'd like to learn more about magic, as well." He replied sadly.

"I am curious; can the procedure you mentioned give magic to humans as well?" McGonagall asked.

"No. It requires a degree of regenerative ability that humans don't have. The body would tear itself apart trying to adapt." Harry replied shortly.

"Headmaster, I…" An extremely large man burst in, only to freeze at the sight of the two other people. "I'm sorry for barging in."

"That's quite alright, Hagrid. We were finishing up anyway. Let me introduce Harry Potter. Harry, Rubeus Hagrid, our Care for Magical Creatures teacher." The large man's eyes bulged comically when he saw the boy before him.

"Merlin's beard, it is. So good to see you Harry. I never stopped hoping you were still alive." Harry grinned as the man's eager handshake threatened to dislocate his arm. His accent took a bit to get used to, but nothing he couldn't follow.

* * *

"You shouldn't fight it, you know." Harry's next words surprised the trio. "I can see the battle lust in your eyes."

"Not many know about that. How?" Hagrid's exuberance quickly shifted into seriousness.

"I have seen it many times before. I can help you with it." Harry grinned. It was not ideal, but the man looked like he could pack a serious punch even though he didn't look very fast. Still, it would give him a sparring partner, and as long as he kept his restrainer active, he wouldn't hurt the man.

"I don't want to hurt you." Hagrid replied, knowing how stronger he was compared to even adults, let alone teenagers.

"Don't worry. Here, punch me as hard as you can." Harry stood firmly before him.

"He won't be harmed, Hagrid. You have my word on it." Dumbledore assured the man.

With a heavy sigh, Hagrid balled up a fist and slugged Harry in the face. Harry stumbled slightly backwards, but did not collapse. McGonagall flinched when she saw how his jaw hung limply and a small trail of blood dripped from his mouth.

With a loud crunch that drew winces from the trio, Harry reset his jaw and pulling his wand, quickly vanished all traces of blood.

"Convinced?" Harry grinned. Hagrid could only nod dumbly.

"Hagrid, would you be as kind as to escort Harry to Diagon Alley? I daresay he will need a great deal in order to catch up with his peers in time for the start of term." Dumbledore gave them all a serene smile.

"Wait, let me get this straight. You want ME, to attend classes with CHILDREN?" Harry gave him a look that clearly questioned the man's sanity.

"Everyone expects you to be a normal teenager. While you're here, it might also be a good idea to sort you." Dumbledore handed him a tattered old hat which Harry quickly put on.

* * *

'Your mind is unlike anything I have ever seen. I am quite curious about this Great Link of yours, but at the same time, I am terrified to approach it.' The hat spoke in his mind.

'It is not something you should attempt. It might destroy you.' Harry replied.

'I believe it is very likely. Now, on to the sorting. You are indeed a difficult one. You would thrive in any of the four houses, of that I have no doubt, but still in your heart, you are a warrior. I'd say you'll do well in Gryffindor.' The hat spoke the last part out loud.

"I still question the sanity of your plan, old man." Harry handed him the hat back.

"Consider it as a mission. You never know where you'll be able to find useful information. Just one more thing. No killing." Dumbledore did not forget the fact that Harry had served in both the military and the Order of Death.

"Don't worry; they'd have to be REALLY annoying for me to do that. On one condition, though. I get a private room. That is not negotiable. Shall we go, then? I can show you some fighting moves when we get back." Harry turned to Hagrid, who nodded dumbly and went down the stairs, followed by the boy.

* * *

On the walk to the nearby village of Hogsmeade, Harry gave Hagrid a very abridged version of his story, mostly focusing on what he was. To say that Hagrid was shocked would be an understatement.

Ten minutes and one uncomfortable floo trip later, the pair walked into Gringotts where they were led to their inheritance department.

"Mr. Potter, can you explain to me why your blood test says you're six hundred and thirty six years old?" The goblin who tested his blood for the validity of his claim exclaimed at the results.

"I'm a vampire." Harry shrugged.

"Good enough for me. Here are your keys, Mr. Potter. You may access your vaults at your leisure. We hope that we can do business with you for many years to come." The goblin replied calmly and handed him a pair of keys.

* * *

After retrieving a sizable amount of money, they made a brief stop to a trunk shop, after which Harry blazed through the alley, buying dozens of books, all sorts of potions ingredients as well as enchanted items. Finally, they stopped before the wand shop.

Despite the fact he had a wand, explaining what it was made of was not something he wanted to do, which meant, he had to get a new one for public use.

"Ah, Mr. Potter. I was wondering if you would ever come to my store." Mr. Ollivander, the wand maker was a most peculiar individual.

After a lengthy selection, Harry was finally matched with a wand that according to Ollivander was the brother wand to Voldemort's. What exactly that meant for Harry, he had no way of knowing at that time.

* * *

"Well, we still have time. How about that spar I promised you?" Harry grinned after he stashed his new trunk in Hagrid's hut.

For a man of his size, Hagrid was surprisingly fast, and showed experience in his movements. During the spar, Harry learned that Hagrid would soon travel towards his mother's people, the giants to convince them to stay out of the coming war.

"Theoretically speaking, what would happen if you killed the current gurg?" Harry asked.

"The gurg is the strongest giant in the tribe. Killing him tells the other giants that you're even stronger, which means you become the new gurg. I can't use magic though, and I'm no match for a fully grown giant." Hagrid grinned at the idea, his blood pumping again after decades of suppression.

"Well, I'm not telling you to do it, but if you're forced in such a situation, it might be beneficial. I have something that might be useful for you. I'll want it back when you return, though. It's not something I can replace." Harry tapped his watch, and the device opened like a fold out map large enough to stick his hand into it.

"Long sword." Harry said, and a hilt pushed forth from the flat surface. He grabbed it and pulled a long blade from the watch before he put it back as it was.

"No giant would protest against you using a sword. The blade is processed to a monomolecular edge. It can cut through anything. Don't worry about chipping it. Only an identical blade has an edge thin enough to parry it. I think I can teach you a few moves that would help you against a much larger opponent." Harry grinned as he demonstrated the sword's sharpness against a nearby tree.

The sword simply passed through the trunk like it was air, regardless of how it was struck. Seconds later, the tree collapsed, a section of it turned into kindling.

* * *

"This will be your room, Harry. Just tell the portrait on the door what you want the password to be and it will let no one pass without it. Not even I can pass through without it." Dumbledore led him to a rarely used visitor's room.

"Good. I need to setup a generator and charging station. You're welcome to observe, I guess." Harry put the watch on the ground, opened it again, but this time folded it to the size of a bed.

"Generator one." Slowly, a machine almost as big as a small car was pulled from the watch.

"I expected something smaller." Dumbledore commented.

"We have antimatter generators the size of a trunk, but they don't last as long as this type and their antimatter tanks need to be refilled periodically. I doubt you have an antimatter factory." Harry grinned.

"What does this one use?" Dumbledore asked as Harry now pulled two devices from the watch. One had sixteen metal-capped cylinders in slots, while the other had over thirty square blocks arranged in it.

"There's a small black hole inside it. The generator creates a special field that draws power from the hole and also counteracts the high gravity field it produces." Harry replied calmly as he connected the two devices to the generator.

"What is it that you're doing now?" Dumbledore asked curiously as Harry began scratching strange letters around the corner where his devices were.

"Just making sure no one sees them. Any human that looks this way will not see the devices and will in fact ignore the corner completely." Harry finished the markings after several minutes.

"I have never seen a ward constructed like this." Dumbledore observed curiously as Harry began pouring magic into the marks, making them glow a faint blue.

"Like I said, we discovered that imbuing certain words and phrases with magic gave them power. Done. So, do you see anything in the corner?" Harry asked with a grin.

"Just an empty corner." Dumbledore shrugged, his eyes quickly moving away from it, before they suddenly snapped back in surprise.

"You know what's behind the ward, so it doesn't work on you for long. Well, Headmaster, it's been a very long day, and I'd like to have some sleep. I shall meet you for breakfast tomorrow, if that's alright." Harry turned towards Dumbledore after taking a very long drink from one of the metal cylinders.

"Of course, Harry. Just ask a portrait for directions towards the Great Hall once you get up. Sleep well, Harry." Dumbledore walked out, leaving him alone.

Feeling mentally exhausted, Harry's jeans and T-shirt changed into a pair of silk pajamas and he jumped into the large four poster bed.

AN: Well, another chapter done, this one was mostly a filler. Next chapter, Harry meets the rest of the Order, his new classmates, as well as our favorite Potions Master and a certain pink toad. On another note, I don't think anyone has given a reason as to why exactly is Hagrid obsessed with dangerous critters. I hope you like my idea. Second, I want to offer you two ideas for a future crossover fic. The first is like Discovery, taking a concept from Naruto as well. The first character of Naruto Harry sees is Hidan and later that night, manages to forge a pact with Jashin, gaining those same skills. The second idea is a Warhammer 40k cross, in which a Space Marine Battle Barge goes off course and reaches Harry's Earth, where their psykers discover that Harry is the God Emperor reincarnated. Tell me what you think, and I'll see if I can manage to write something.


	5. Chapter 5

Another chapter finally done, this one a bit of an interlude. I hope you like it.

**Chapter 5**

Harry woke up early, and spent an hour working out after which he quickly altered his clothes into a simple pair of jeans and a T-shirt and walked out in the corridor.

The fact that his clothes was actually a second layer of skin grown and altered to mimic the appearance of clothes was a source of endless amusement with him. This trick meant extra blood consumption, therefore it was used sparingly.

"Could you point me towards the Great Hall?" He turned to one of the portraits. This use of magic seemed pointless and frivolous to him, but he couldn't really comment without knowing more.

* * *

When he arrived in the Great Hall, Dumbledore and McGonagall were already there, along with a younger black haired man.

The man wore black robes, and had an unpleasant, sneering face with a large hooked nose and sallow skin.

"Good morning." Harry nodded to the trio and sat down.

"Harry, I'd like you to meet Professor Severus Snape, our resident Potions Master. Severus, this is Harry Potter." Dumbledore greeted him with a nod.

"Mr. Potter. So good of you to finally show yourself." Snape's tone showed open dislike.

"Have I done something to offend you, sir?" Harry turned to face the man. He caught the man's eyes, and suddenly, Snape winced and broke eye contact.

"Severus was a schoolmate of your parents, Harry. He and your father had a bit of a history." Dumbledore decided to elaborate.

"I see. As long as he remains professional inside the classroom, I don't care if he hates my family or me. And on that subject, do I have any living relatives left?" Harry replied calmly.

"Actually, your mother's sister still lives. She is a Muggle, a non-magical. I can arrange a meeting, if you wish it." Dumbledore replied.

"Couldn't hurt to meet her. I promised to help Hagrid this morning, but I am free this afternoon if possible, or if not, then tomorrow." Harry said.

* * *

Before Dumbledore could reply, the door opened, and a short woman resembling a toad in a tacky pink cardigan walked in, followed by a man in a red robe.

Harry's hand started to inch towards his hidden dagger, his mind screaming at him to destroy the creature.

"Madam Umbridge, to what do we owe the pleasure?" Dumbledore stood up, and it was only decades of training that allowed Harry to pick up the dislike in the man's voice.

"I am here to discuss the trouble you've been having with finding a suitable DADA teacher. The Minister has just issued a new educational decree that should help you in this regard." The woman spoke, and hearing her voice made Harry want to slit her throat even more.

His instincts screamed at him that this woman was trouble, and that he should end her life as soon as possible.

"Is that so?" Dumbledore said with a frown.

"Yes. In the event that you are unable to find a teacher for a position at Hogwarts, the Ministry shall assign a suitable candidate. And who might this be?" Umbridge shifted her gaze to Harry now, who started to recite the Litany of Shadows in his mind to shift his focus from the woman before him.

"This is Harry Potter, madam. I was most fortunate to find him a few days ago. He is staying here in order to familiarize himself with the magical world and to catch up with his peers." Dumbledore replied quickly.

"And do you really think he can manage to catch up? He'd be in fifth year now." Umbridge asked a tone of suspicion in her voice.

"I believe I can master enough to start classes. I'll cover the rest as I go along." Harry replied calmly.

"I see. It is good to see you back, Mr. Potter, but you should watch that you don't end up with the wrong sort of people." With that, Umbridge stalked out of the hall, and moments later, Snape excused himself as well.

"That was unpleasant. I better get to Hagrid's." With that, Harry walked out as well.

* * *

"That's good, but next time, bend your knee just a bit more. Right, now, the next move is…" Harry was busy teaching Hagrid a few useful moves that dealt with fighting targets that were bigger than you.

Right after lunch, Dumbledore informed him that he had sent his aunt a letter, informing her of their arrival, and a short portkey trip later, they were there.

* * *

The area was a typical suburban neighborhood, with cookie cutter houses spread in equal intervals.

"This place is eerie." Harry, used to a rather chaotic lifestyle was shocked by the monotony of his surroundings.

"I know what you mean." Dumbledore, who was wearing rather eccentric red and orange robes, was no different.

"Good afternoon, Petunia." Dumbledore spoke as the door opened to number four, Privet Drive, and allowed Harry to get the first glimpse of his only remaining relative.

Petunia Dursley was a tall, somewhat horsy looking woman. She had very little in common with her sister, but Harry could tell she was indeed a relative.

"This is my husband Vernon and my son Dudley." Petunia introduced her family to the pair. It was painfully obvious that they Dumbledore had forced them to accept this meeting. Harry could feel the badly suppressed dislike.

"Nice to meet you." Harry shook their hands, smirking inwardly as they both tried to prove their strength by crushing his hand.

"You'll forgive us if we sound rude, but we don't want anything to do with your lot." Vernon said quickly.

"I can understand that. I've only known about magic about a week myself. It was quite the shock." Harry smiled lightly. Slowly, the three Dursleys began to loosen up a bit, and an hour later, were chatting comfortably with Harry.

"It was nice to meet you all. I'll try to visit again when I can. Perhaps we can play a round of golf, Vernon." Harry grinned at the man as he and Dumbledore stood up and got ready to leave.

"That was impressive, Harry." Dumbledore was amazed he managed to get the Dursleys comfortable with his presence. He had met them before, and they were some of the most prejudiced and magic-hating muggles he had ever known.

"Basic diplomacy, old man. I saw immediately the sort of people they were, and I knew we would get a cold reception. Still despite their flaws, they are family. That means a lot to me." Harry replied as Dumbledore got another portkey ready.

"I have to ask you, why do you call me old man, when you're much older then me?" Dumbledore commented.

"Because you're an old human. Besides, I like calling you that." Harry gave him a cheeky grin.

* * *

The next few days passed quickly for Harry. He spent most of his time either training with Hagrid or reading and practicing in his room. Dumbledore told him he would meet some of his future peers as well as some of the people that opposed Voldemort, but he had to wait until their HQ was ready and everyone was gathered there.

"Well, I'll be leaving in an hour. Thanks for the lessons, Harry. I just hope I won't have to use it." Hagrid smiled lightly. Over the last week, he had again reconnected with his giant half, and he was both scared and excited in meeting his mother's people.

"Hope for the best and be prepared for the worst, Hagrid. Never forget that." Harry grinned.

* * *

The next day, Dumbledore told him he was finally going to visit the HQ of the Order of the Phoenix, the organization Dumbledore had formed to combat Voldemort's threat.

Another uncomfortable portkey trip later, they arrived in a slightly run down part of London.

"Here, read this." Dumbledore handed him a note. As the Secret Keeper, he could tell him, but he did not want to risk speaking the Secret out loud.

'The HQ of the Order of the Phoenix is at number 12, Grimmauld Place?' Harry frowned as he read it, only to gasp in shock as a house popped out from between the two before him.

"How is it done?" Harry asked.

"Simple. You place specific runes on or around the object you wish to hide, then cast the spell, hiding it and placing the secret of it's location in a Secret Keeper. The larger the object, the more power it takes." Dumbledore replied.

"I'd like to learn more about this spell." Harry grinned inwardly. He was not very impressed with what human mages had accomplished. True, some things were quite impressive, but they lacked the scientific understanding to truly advance. This spell changed some of his views, and he wondered what else he might learn.

* * *

The inside of the house was dark, and the smell of mold, rot and filth overpowered his sensitive nose, forcing him to switch off most of his sense of smell.

"This place is disgusting. Couldn't you find a better location for an HQ?" Harry snapped.

"This house hasn't been lived in for a while, but it is heavily warded. This way, Harry." Dumbledore led him into a large kitchen, already full of people. Several children were talking to a pink haired woman on one end of the table, and on another, a gaunt man with messy black hair was talking with a tall black man. A balding red-haired man was talking to two people who seemed a bit nervous, while another woman, a slightly dumpy red-haired one was fussing about at the stove.

All talking stopped when Dumbledore and Harry walked in.

"Let me introduce you, Harry. This is your godfather, Sirius Black and Kingsley Shacklebolt, one of the Aurors of the Ministry." Kingsley gave him a slight nod, while Sirius gave him a tear-filled hug.

"I knew you were alive, kid." Sirius whispered.

"This is Arthur Weasley, and the Grangers, Dan and Emma. Their daughter Hermione is over there." Dumbledore introduced the next bunch.

"Nice to meet you all." Harry said politely.

"Molly Weasley is over there, and these are her children Fred, George, Ron and Ginny. And last, but not least, this lovely young lady is Nymphadora Tonks." Dumbledore finished the introductions.

"Call me Tonks." Tonks said immediately.

"You have four children?" Harry turned to the Weasley couple in surprise.

"Seven, actually. Bill, Charlie and Percy aren't here." One of the twins added.

* * *

As the day went on, Harry managed to avoid talking about his past other then a few vague tales he came up with at that moment that were hard enough to keep others from prying too deeply.

On the other hand, he had heard a great deal of stories from his future classmates about their adventures at Hogwarts.

In their first year, Hermione was almost killed by a troll, and had gotten away by shooting sparks at its eyes. Even now, the girl paled at the traumatizing memory.

In their second year, there was only the discovery that Ginny had somehow came in possession of a dangerous enchanted diary. Thanks to her quick friendship with Hermione, the book was quickly discovered and handed to Dumbledore, who had it examined and destroyed before any harm could come from it.

In their third year, Sirius had escaped from Azkaban and came to Hogwarts to find and kill the person that betrayed Harry's parents. The man's name was Peter Pettigrew, who was discovered by the twins thanks to a magical map they had with them. Pettigrew was caught and interrogated, but on route to Azkaban, managed to escape.

Harry was inwardly pleased this man managed to escape, since he wished to kill the man himself.

Fortunately, his interrogation was enough to get Sirius freed. Then, last year was the year when the Triwizard tournament was held at Hogwarts.

One of Voldemort's men infiltrated the school and kidnapped the winner, Cedric Diggory for a ritual to resurrect the Dark Lord.

By the time the stories were finished, it was dinnertime, and after a quick meal, all the children were ushered out and to the bedrooms since they weren't allowed to attend Order meetings.

The look Harry gave Dumbledore made his annoyance at this plain, but outwardly, he didn't protest.

* * *

Once upstairs, Harry noticed a large library and decided to peruse it.

"I don't think you should touch those books, they still haven't gone through them to get rid of the ones about Dark magic." Hermione followed him in.

"Get rid of knowledge?" Harry was aghast at the mere idea. To Lantrisi every shred of new knowledge they could get was precious.

"Not all knowledge is meant to be learnt." Hermione said smartly.

"Perhaps. I prefer to judge for my self." With that, Harry took a book and turned towards a large dusty recliner. With a flick of his wand, it was pristine.

"You can't do magic here. The Ministry will use the Trace to find us." She shrieked.

"In case you've forgotten, I was missing and presumed dead for thirteen years. I don't have the Trace." He grinned. Of course, he was also far too old for it, since the Trace spell could only be cast on mages under seventeen.

"Oh." That was all she could say.

"So, what's the book about?" She quickly changed the subject.

"Oh, curses, mostly. This spell here causes the target's eyes to melt." He shrugged, ignoring her shocked look.

"You're actually going to read such a vile thing?" She protested.

"Know thy enemy and all that. Even if you never use them, it's a good idea to learn them so you can recognize them, wouldn't you say?" He grinned.

"I suppose so." She said weakly.

"Here. Grab a book and read. We'll compare notes later." Harry cleaned another recliner for her.

She spent several minutes browsing the faded titles, until she picked a book on beginner's curses and started reading.

Their reading time was rudely interrupted when a three feet tall creature walked in. Harry wrinkled his nose at the thing's foul odor. It had long, floppy ears, big round eyes and a dirty loincloth around his waist. It was muttering silently.

"Muggle filth, half-breeds and blood traitors, besmirching the house of my Mistress…" It stopped when it saw the two people in the room.

"Hello, Kreacher." Hermione said nervously, but it ignored her.

"Leave." Harry snapped, and Kreacher froze. That single word filled him with dread and his senses screamed at him to run away.

"At once sir. A thousand pardons for the interruption." He bowed to the floor and rushed out as fast as he could run.

"How did you do that?" Hermione asked in surprise. Harry just shrugged in response. He couldn't really tell her this Kreacher recognized him as a dangerous predator.

They returned to their books, for the moment, ignoring the world around them.


	6. Chapter 6

The next chapter is here, and brings with it the first bit of action with it. I admit my fight scenes are not that good, but I hope I managed to write a good one. Enjoy

**Chapter 6**

The rest of the summer passed quickly for Harry and his newfound study partner Hermione. The girl demonstrated great intelligence and dedication, but had, at least according to Harry, a very naïve view of the world.

Still, he found her company enjoyable, especially when they had a debate on one or another topic. There were very few people on Earth that could challenge him mentally.

Before anyone knew it, it was September 1st, and time for a new school year.

* * *

"Enter." Harry heard a knock on his room door, and turned to see Dumbledore walking in. The old man's eyes widened at the assortment of strange weapons all over Harry's bed and floor.

Harry was currently busy turning a pile of strange components Dumbledore couldn't even imagine the purpose of in a pair of what Dumbledore guessed were some sort of advanced rifle.

"I wanted to check the condition of the weapons I brought while I still had the time. Give me five minutes and I'll pack it all up." Harry finished the assembly without even looking at the pieces and soon had everything back into his watch.

"Would you like to walk with me down to the Great Hall? The students will arrive soon." Dumbledore asked once he was finished.

"Might as well." With that, Harry's clothes changed to a Gryffindor robe set.

* * *

Once in the Hall, Harry took a seat at the Gryffindor table and lay down on the bench, staring at the night sky that was shown on the ceiling and hummed one of his favorite songs.

Lantrisi music was a very interesting subject, since it divided the society to two halves. One side practiced gar'shik music, which was soft and gentle, with uplifting and inspiring lyrics. The other side played lokor'isha music, which reflected the violent nature of the Lantrisi and had roots in Terran heavy metal but had evolved a great deal from that style.

* * *

He was still humming lightly when the first students began to file in. He sat up quickly, and began to study the people who walked in. Soon enough, people were starting to join him on the Gryffindor table, and many started asking who he was.

"Wait until everyone is here. I don't want to answer the same question a thousand times." Harry grinned, refusing to say more on the matter.

Once everyone was seated and McGonagall brought in the new first year students, Dumbledore stood up, silencing the hall as he did.

"Before we start, I have a small announcement to make. You have, no doubt noticed the new addition to the Gryffindor table tonight. It is with great pleasure that I inform you that after fourteen years, Harry Potter has been found and has joined his peers at Hogwarts. Let us all give him a warm welcome." Dumbledore clapped as the Hall erupted in applause, cheers and loud murmurs.

The people around Harry stared at him in a mix of awed surprise and shock as he gave them a slight smirk.

It took a while for the din to die down, but once it did, McGonagall proceeded with the sorting. It wasn't long before that was finished too and the food appeared on the tables.

Not really needing the food, Harry was content to sample the dishes enough to avoid suspicion, even if the nutritional value for him was like eating a handful of raisins was for a human.

Soon enough, the meal was over, and Dumbledore stood up once again.

* * *

"Well, now that we are all digesting another magnificent feast, I beg a few moments of your attention for the usual start of term notices. First years ought to know that the Forest in the grounds is out of bounds to students and a few of our older students ought to know by now, too."

Taking a short breath, Dumbledore continued.

"Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me, for what he tells me is the four hundred and sixty second time, to remind you all that magic is not permitted in corridors between classes, nor are a number of other things, all of which can be checked on the extensive list now fastened to Mr. Filch's office door. We have had two changes in staffing this year. We are very pleased to welcome back Professor Grubbly-Plank, who will be taking Care of Magical Creatures lessons; we are also delighted to introduce Professor Umbridge, our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher." Dumbledore pointed out the two women.

"Tryouts for the house Quidditch teams will take place on the…" He was interrupted however, by Professor Umbridge.

Her speech was purest rubbish, but the hidden message was very clear. She was there to make sure the school was run according to the will of the Ministry.

"Figures. Well, I'd say this will be a most interesting year." Harry sighed lightly. He had met with Umbridge several more times since their first meeting, and the desire to stab her repeatedly had not lessened in the least.

Harry split off from the rest of the students in the corridor leading to his room. Hermione noticed him, but since she knew he had a separate room, didn't comment. He had promised he would show it to her this weekend.

* * *

Classes started quickly, and Harry's expectations of the classes had proven true. Charms and Transfiguration were hectic, but also very interesting. History was as boring and bland as Sothian art, while Potions were a most interesting topic, especially the multitude of poisons he had read about in Sirius's library. It took several veiled and not so veiled threats towards Dumbledore to prevent the Order from removing even a single book from there, a fact that brought a smile to Harry's face every time he thought about it.

Ancient Runes was a very interesting subject, since thanks to Lord Deathhand, Harry knew how to read, write and speak most of the runic languages, and adding the magical side of it was only icing on the cake.

Arithmancy on the other hand, did not turn out so good. Harry endured a single class, cringing at the level of mathematics the magical world seemed to employ. After the class, he started redoing all the calculations and equations in his Arithmancy books using Lantrisi mathematics. It was a long-term project, but he felt it was something that had to be done in the name of his own continued sanity.

The one subject that made him want to bang a head in a wall (not his, of course) was Defense against the Dark Arts.

Umbridge made it abundantly clear in their first class that her lesson plan for the year was completely theoretical, and she was using a book Harry wouldn't have used for kindling, let alone what passed for a tactical manual in this society.

Finally, the weekend came, and with that, Harry had invited Hermione to his room. He contemplated on inviting others as well, but decided against it. Ron was a person with far too many negative traits and was grating on Harry's nerves whenever the boy spoke about his glorious adventures in the school. Ginny was all right, but it was hard to talk to someone when they were drowning you in pheromones. Fred and George were the only other people he spent time with, finding their inventions and pranks hilarious. He knew better then to unleash those two on his room though, especially with the amount of Lantrisi hardware he had in there.

"Oh my god. You actually have the Master's guide to Potions." Hermione gave an excited squeal when she saw the few rare tomes in Harry's bookcase.

"There was a copy in my family vault. I also have the Big Book of Transfiguration and the Olympic Dueling Manual." Harry' grinned as the girl was practically bouncing on her feet.

"Can I please borrow them?" In an instant, she stood before him, giving him a really adorable puppy eyes.

"No. You are welcome to read them here, though." Her protest died in her throat as she considered the offer. A private area where she could read in peace and work on her homework without distractions sounded perfect.

* * *

Life for Harry, however, did not remain as calm as it was so far. It seemed Umbridge was suspicious of his sudden appearance and his affiliation with Dumbledore, so she tried to have him riled up during her classes, but Harry had yet to react even once. He always delivered his homework on time, remained attentive, even in her class, and never caused trouble.

Feeling angry at her failure, she called Draco Malfoy to her office for a little talk. It didn't take much to convince the boy to attack Harry in the corridors where he could retaliate and Umbridge could punish him for fighting in the corridors.

Harry's sharp senses alerted him to the spell flying at him before it even made it half-way. He turned and sidestepped it, avoiding the spell and allowing him to face his attacker, who turned out to be Draco Malfoy.

"Big mistake." Harry snapped as his wand slid into his hand. At that moment, Umbridge walked in, and Harry realized what had happened, cursing himself for not being more alert.

"Fighting in the corridors, Mr. Potter? I think this merits a detention." She smirked victoriously.

"If you say so, professor. When should I come?" Harry said calmly.

"Tonight at seven, Mr. Potter. Don't be late." With that, she walked away.

"Malfoy." Draco stopped as Harry called him. "You will regret this."

Shivering from the icy tone in which Harry said that, Draco wasted no time to get as far away as possible.

* * *

"Please sit down, Mr. Potter. You'll be doing lines for me tonight." She gestured to a desk on which there was already parchment and a strange looking quill.

"What should I write?" Harry asked.

"I will not start fights." She grinned as she sat down behind her desk. Harry found the whole place revolting, starting with the odd kitten pictures on the wall to the scent that lingered in the chamber.

He wrote the first word when he felt a sting on his palm, and there on the paper, written in red ink was the letter I. Bending a bit, he felt the scent of Lantrisi blood.

His eyes widened at the realization. The quill was drawing blood from him. This toad was actually daring to force him to spill his blood for something this insignificant?

He clenched his hand in anger and heard a loud 'snap' as the quill broke in half.

"You little brat, do you know how much that cost me?" Umbridge roared and moved in on him, wand drawn, but before she could cast anything, she was disarmed, pressed against the wall and hanging a foot above the floor.

Harry's grip around her neck was unyielding, leaving her just enough slack to get some air in her lungs.

"I should kill you for this insult, you ugly bitch. Still, your disappearance would raise too many questions, so I will have to deny myself this pleasure." With that, he pulled his mithril wand and pressed it on her temple.

"Farik-tha iteri." He cast a memory altering spell and after he was satisfied with the changes, he dropped her, still dazed from the spell and rushed away.

* * *

Enraged by this, he stalked the corridors without aim until he managed to stumble at a house elf cleaning.

The poor creature was shivering in fright before the clearly pissed off and dangerous being before it, but the elf didn't dare leave.

"You, elf. You know the castle well?" The elf didn't trust his voice, so he only gave a nod.

"Is there a place where I won't be disturbed no matter what I do?" Harry was starting to lose his rage, but was still pissed off.

The elf nodded and led him towards the seventh floor. "You just need to pass the wall three times thinking about what you want, sir." The elf explained with a very heavy stutter and while shivering like a leaf in a hurricane.

"Good. You can leave now." The elf vanished instantly, and Harry did as it instructed. A standard Lantrisi door appeared, and slid to the side as he pressed the door control.

* * *

The inside was a perfect replica of a Lantrisi duel pit, and hissing and snarling at him from the other side was a Gorash warrior.

The Gorash were a race that resembled reptiles, but that was as far as that relation went. They were sulfur-based, but still breathed nitrogen-oxygen air, which was good for Harry in this situation. It wasn't much of a fight if all one had to do was remove your opponent's breather mask, was it?

Standing at eight feet tall and weighing over a thousand pounds with thick, rippling muscles, long spiked tail and mouth filled with sharp teeth dripping yellow ichor, the creature could easily tear a human in half.

Harry paced carefully around the pit as he and the Gorash eyed each other warily, waiting for the first strike to fall. It would be a hard fight, since Gorash were almost as strong as Lantrisi, a fact augmented by their greater size and mass. They were also surprisingly quick for a creature that big.

With a loud roar, Harry rushed his opponent, his hand moving for the creature's ribs. The Gorash twisted to the side, swiping its claws as it did, nearly tearing Harry's head off, who managed to duck and roll away.

He turned around, twisting to avoid another sweep of the beast's razor-sharp claws and used the opportunity to strike a nerve cluster in the arm, forcing the muscles to lock up for a moment.

Using the thusly provided opening, he went to the offensive and using a precise strike, broke one of the creature's lung covering plates. Similar to ribs, they served the same function and were just as debilitating when broken.

The Gorash roared in pain and this time, managed to bash Harry and tore a deep gash on his shoulder.

Harry jumped away, hissing and barring his fangs at the beast as the wound rapidly knitted together.

Spitting a glob of thick, dark-yellow blood, the Gorash growled and rushed Harry, who, while dodging the main strike, was struck by its tail when he kicked and broke one of it's knees.

Before the tear on his back could heal, the Gorash jumped him and ran him through and pinned him to the wall.

As the beast raised his other arm to deliver the killing blow, Harry's body rippled, then reversed itself. Roaring in defiance, Harry's hands snapped up and stabbed into the beast's chest, where he knew the two hearts were.

The Gorash collapsed like a house of cards from that, its weight loosening its hand from the wall and pulling Harry, who was still impaled on it down with it.

Wincing from the beast's coarse skin as he pulled himself off, he quickly healed his injuries. Clearly feeling the massive blood loss, he pulled out a feeder unit and drank greedily.

"A Gorash? What the hell was I thinking?" Harry growled, his anger replaced by shame. He acted in blind rage, and his fight reflected that. He fought wildly, without any control or technique. "I acted like a damn beast." He pushed himself up, as the body of the Gorash vanished. All that was left in the room were the various puddles of his blood which he quickly vanished.

"Am I falling to the Blood Rage?" He whispered. It was one of the few illnesses the Lantrisi had. It was a psychological disorder that caused uncontrollable bloodlust. The causes were not clear, but the cure was relatively simple. The afflicted had to fight until the lust was sated, or they died.

Feeling that his blood lust had died down after his fight, Harry sighed in relief, realizing he was not falling to this dreaded illness. However, it remained a grim possibility.

"I will not lose myself. I am stronger than that." Fists clenched tightly, Harry turned towards the door and walked out.


	7. Chapter 7

Here's the new chapter, a bit later than I'd have wanted to, but had a lot to do lately. Not much action for now, but it's coming, don't worry. Anyway, enjoy and review if you have anything to say.

**Chapter 7**

Several weeks later, yet another reason was added to Harry's 'why to kill Umbridge' list. It was incredible how much out of her way the woman went to make herself disliked.

With her new position of High Inquisitor, she quickly made life less tolerable for not only the students, but the teachers as well.

It was a week before the first Hogsmeade weekend that the seeds of rebellion were planted in Hogwarts.

"That woman is impossible. Her book is useless drivel, and even I don't think I can cast a spell successfully on my first try." Hermione almost growled as she was writing her DADA homework.

"Yeah. It's a good thing I have my own room, or I'd never get any practice with the DADA spells." Harry joined in.

"You practice on your own?" Hermione turned towards him, her homework forgotten.

"Yeah. Theory is all and good, but I came here to do magic, not learn about it." Harry replied, not saying that their magical theories had more holes than Swiss cheese. Applying advanced energy principles to the spell theories actually allowed him to improve a great deal of spells. Not for the first time, he was grateful he only needed six hours of sleep every two days. It took more blood to keep going, but it gave him the time to handle both schoolwork and his own projects.

"How far are you?" She asked.

"I just started on the fourth year material. I haven't covered everything, of course, just what I felt was the most important to help me understand what the teachers are saying in class." Harry grinned.

"That's incredible." Hermione gasped, both amazed and slightly envious.

"I've always learned fast. We can add some practice sessions to our private study time, if you'd like to." Harry offered her. Adding another hour to their reading time would not be too much of a burden.

"I'd like that, but…" She paused in thought for a moment. "What about others? Umbridge is crippling all of us, not just one or two students."

"Well, theoretically, we could do something about it. I don't know too many spells, but I can learn them quickly. If you take care of the theoretical part, I could take care of the demonstrations. Also, I can teach you other things. I once met an old SAS member. He taught me a lot about tactics and other such things." Harry grinned.

"Still, that would be very difficult to arrange. We would need a place to meet, contact people and organize schedules…" Hermione drifted off.

"Not to mention making sure no one involved talks to people they shouldn't. So, do you think we should do this?" Harry asked with a wide grin.

"Well, it would be for a good cause…" Hermione paused before getting a determined look on her face.

"Let's do this. I'll get a spell list ready and start spreading the word. I think we should tell people to meet us in Hogsmeade this weekend. There's a pub called the Hog's Head that's a bit out of the way."

"Bad idea. Students rarely go there, and it's not that busy during the day, from what Hagrid told me. Tell them to go to the Three Broomsticks. No one will question a large group sitting together there, and we can cast privacy charms to make sure no one eavesdrops. I'll start working on a contract for the group, and I already have the perfect location for the meetings. Let's go to the common room and spread the word. Remember to only speak with people you're certain won't sell us out." Harry stood up, following Hermione out of his room.

* * *

The week passed in a flurry of preparations, trying to get everything organized and ready for the coming weekend.

It was early in the morning when Harry and Hermione headed towards Hogsmeade, along with Ron and Ginny.

"Get us a table; I'll go get some drinks." Harry told them and headed towards the bar, carefully making some changes to his appearance.

"What'll it be?" Madam Rosmerta, the proprietor asked.

"Three butterbeers and a bottle of Firewhisky with a glass please." Harry handed her the coins and was soon handed his order.

"Is that Firewhisky? How did you get that?" Ron's eyes grew wide when he saw what Harry set before himself.

"Just got to know how to ask." Ignoring Hermione's scandalized look, he poured himself a glass, gulping it in one go and shooting a stream of smoke from his nose.

"Nice. Has an interesting aftertaste." Harry grinned.

"Have you been drinking before?" Hermione asked reproachfully.

"Just the occasional Nova Blast." He shrugged. "Now that will put hair on your chest."

In truth, the potent mix of synthetic toxins used for the drink would more likely kill a human after the first sip. A powerful immune system was both a curse and a blessing, and it took the Lantrisi three centuries to invent something that would actually let them get hammered when they felt like it.

Slowly, people began to trickle in, taking seats on Harry's table or those around it, even moving them around so that they'd all be able to listen.

Once it seemed that no one else would be showing, Harry and Hermione cast a few spells to reduce the noise from the full inn around their tables as well as ensuring their privacy.

"You all know why you're here, so I'll get right to the point. Umbridge is teaching is squat, and we've decided to take matters in our own hands. Before we proceed, everyone please sign this. Don't do it lightly. Once you do, there's no backing out." Harry pulled out a sheet of parchment.

"This is a magical contract?" A Ravenclaw girl asked.

"Yes. Nothing harmful, but any contract breaker will be punished harshly. You can still back out, Umbridge can't punish us for talking." To their credit, not one person stood up.

Several minutes later, everyone had signed, and the contract was back in Harry's coat.

* * *

"Now, let's talk about organizing this thing. My knowledge about magic is incomplete at best, so I'll leave the research on the theories to people more inclined to those matters. I do however have a knack with the practical side of magic and I think I can help you with that. Also, I have studied combat tactics extensively. I'd say that if you study hard, you'll be a cut above even the best Death Eaters." Harry's words rang solemn in their small group.

"He really is back, isn't he?" A Hufflepuff boy asked nervously.

"Hope for the best and prepare for the worst, I always say." Harry did not want to reply to such a loaded question, so he gave a reply he felt everyone would accept.

"Sounds good to us. So, all that's left is the where and the when." The Weasley twins joined in.

"Meet me at the seventh floor near the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy tomorrow at six. We'll schedule the next meeting then. If we keep the dates random, it will give us a less chance of getting caught, plus, it won't cut in the practice time of those of you on the Quidditch teams. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to buy myself an obscene amount of chocolate before I head back." Harry stood up, light and steady on his feet and was out of the tavern at a brisk pace, Hermione following close behind.

* * *

Fred took the bottle of Firewhisky next to him and tipped it over, letting a single drop fall out.

"He didn't even wobble." He whispered.

* * *

The next morning, the students woke up to find an unexpected addition to their notice boards.

_BY ORDER OF THE HIGH_ _INQUISITOR OF HOGWARTS_

_All student organizations, societies, teams, groups and clubs are henceforth disbanded. An organization, society, team, group or club is hereby defined as a regular meeting of three or more students._

_Permission to re-form may be sought from the High Inquisitor (Professor Umbridge). No student organization, society, team, group or club may exist without the knowledge and approval of the High Inquisitor. Any student found to have formed, or to belong to, an organization, society, team, group or club that has not been approved by the High Inquisitor will be expelled._

_The above is in accordance with Educational Decree Number Twenty‐four. Signed: Dolores Jane Umbridge, High Inquisitor._

"Do you think she knows?" Hermione turned towards Harry.

"No, we would have already been expelled if she did. It's more likely there was someone in the pub that was working for her or the Ministry. Now, I doubt they overheard us, but a meeting of a large group of students from different years and houses would raise some eyebrows." Harry had noticed every single person spying on them, but knew they had nothing concrete, thanks to their privacy charms.

"Are we still doing it?" George asked.

"Yeah. Tell the others as well." Harry replied and followed the small crowd of Gryffindor students down to breakfast.

* * *

That night, Harry went ahead to prepare the room and also set several Lantrisi perimeter trip wards. They were unknown magic in this world, so he doubted anyone would notice them in a place so saturated with magic.

The first circle alerted him when someone was on this floor, which was just to tell him someone was in the area. If the second ward was tripped, then the person was definitely heading towards the RoR, and they had until the third ward was tripped to get out using the side passages he discovered and would tell the others during the meeting.

"Welcome everyone. This is a very special room I learned about from one of the house elves working here. It has everything we need for our purposes. Now, to win in a fight, you need three things. Stamina, speed and accuracy. I will give you exercises that will help you improve the first two and I want you to train every day. They will also be very beneficial for those of you who play Quidditch. Accuracy we will practice here, and we will not stop until you can hit a human at twenty feet ten out of ten times while standing still and at least eight out of ten while moving around." Harry began.

"We won't be learning spells?" One boy asked quickly.

"Of course we will. We will cover every spell that comes on the OWL and the NEWT as well, but that will be an integral part of the accuracy training, not a separate lesson. Now, line up against a target. You will be using the Disarming charm at ten feet. Ready, fire."

"Expeliarmus." The group shouted loudly, and red bolts of energy rained all over the targets, but only a handful hit. Harry had charmed them to glow when a spell hit them so that everyone would know if they hit or not.

"Not bad. Keep casting, it takes hard work if you want to be any good." Harry gave them all a grin and spent the evening correcting casting stances, wand movements and aiming techniques.

An hour and a half later, he felt that the newly dubbed Defense Association, or as they called it, Dumbledore's Army after they learned that this was the reason Umbridge was here in the first place, had greatly improved their accuracy.

Of course, it would take weeks before it became instinctual, and even longer to get as good at casting while moving, but they showed progress.

* * *

"I'm exhausted. It was fun, though." Hermione grinned as they parted ways near Harry's room.

"Yeah. Looking forward to the next meeting." Harry grinned and walked away. He still had several hours of work before he could go to bed. Grabbing a feeding unit, he took a long draw from it and went to his desk where his book on magical theory was being written.

Taking a brief look at the long sheet of parchment filled with vertical rows of strange letters calmed him somewhat.

Picking up his quill and a fresh sheet, he continued his work, occasionally consulting a book or one of the many other parchments on his desk, or delving into the collective memory of the Great Link when it was necessary.

Life sank into a routine at Hogwarts. The DA meetings continued regularly, and the members were always eager to learn, even if they grumbled when Harry described the physical training regime to them. Even if they hated the workouts, they did them, knowing that they would benefit in the end.

It became easier to schedule meetings when Hermione demonstrated her brilliance and came up with a bunch of fake Galleons that she had enchanted to display the date and time of the next meeting, giving the master coin to Harry.

Harry felt comfortable in his routine as the months moved on, and when he fell asleep the night before the Christmas break, he didn't expect things to change.


	8. Chapter 8

Here's the next chapter. Sorry for the delay, had a lot to take care of. It's a bit of a filler, and I hope a glimpse to another side of Harry. Anyway, enjoy and review.

**Chapter 8**

Harry found himself in a vaguely familiar corridor. He had dreamt of this place several times before, and realized that they somehow came from Voldemort. His body felt different, and it took him a moment to realize he was a snake. Feeling that he might get some info out of this, Harry did nothing to reveal his presence to Voldemort, content only to observe.

After a few minutes, the snake reached a door and noticed that it was guarded by a sleeping man.

The snake's instinct was to bite the man, but Voldemort pressed for secrecy. The snake reached the man just as he began to stir. He woke up, shocked at the sight of the serpent before him.

He reached for his wand just as the snake reared back and struck its fangs into his side again and again.

The sensation of the bite washed over Harry like a tide. The feeling of flesh tearing and bones cracking as warm, sweet blood gushed down his throat was intoxicating.

His instincts overwhelmed him, and he pushed all of his mental force into the serpent, forcing it to bite again. The sudden intrusion, however, had the completely opposite effect, and Harry found himself sitting upright in his bed, panting heavily.

He rushed to the adjoining bathroom and stared in shock at the mirror. His fangs stood out at full length, preventing him from closing his mouth, and his eyes were completely red, shining brightly on his pale face.

"Blood Rage." He cursed. He was better than this, damn it. He was not some damn animal that lived only to feed.

Remembering the face of the man that was attacked, he changed his clothes quickly and rushed out of the room towards the Headmaster's office.

* * *

Halfway there, he was intercepted by Snape.

"Potter, don't you know it's after curfew? What are you doing running around the castle like that?"

"I need to speak with the Headmaster right away. It's urgent." Harry said quickly.

"Follow me, then." Snape said after a moment of contemplation.

"Severus, Harry, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Dumbledore was fortunately still awake.

"You need to send someone to check on Mr. Weasley right away. He was just attacked by a large snake." Harry's words shocked them.

"You saw it happen?" Dumbledore whispered.

"Yes. I told you about the connection. It was as if I was really there. I could see and feel everything." Harry replied, his eyes glinting at the memory. Fortunately, the two men missed this.

"Everard, and you too, Dilys." Dumbledore turned towards two portraits who nodded and walked out of their frames.

It was only a minute before the man called Everard returned, panting lightly. "I yelled until someone came running, told them I heard something move downstairs. I wasn't sure they believed me, but they sent someone to check anyway, they carried him up a minute later, he didn't look good, and he was covered in blood."

"Good. I think Dilys would have seen him arrive then…" The old man turned to the portrait of the witch, and she arrived mere moments afterwards.

"Yes, he's at St. Mungo's, they carried him passed my portrait, and he was a mess."

"What do you suggest we do about this Headmaster?" Snape asked silently.

"No one knows about Harry's involvement in this, and I'd like to keep it that way. Perhaps it would be best if you went to HQ for the holidays, Harry…"

"No. I'm staying right here. I have too much work to do to abandon it like that." Harry cut him off.

"Very well. One other thing. After the holidays, I'd like you to have Occlumency lessons with Professor Snape. Occlumency is…"

"I know what Occlumency is, professor, and I don't think it will be necessary. I could have broken the vision at any time tonight, I just wanted to see if I might learn something useful from it." Harry replied calmly.

"Very well. You are free to leave." Dumbledore nodded.

* * *

It was the day after Christmas and McGonagall was walking through the castle, heading back to her quarters after a visit to Hogsmeade when she heard a choked cough behind her.

She turned around and froze in place at the sight before her. Harry was leaning on the wall, hand reaching for her and fangs barred. A stream of blood flowed from his mouth and several wounds on his head. There were large gashes all over his torso and legs, and his left arm was held to his body by a small strip of skin and sinew. He coughed out a large glob of blood, and she noticed that several of his ribs were sticking in his right lung.

"Room… need…" He wheezed between coughs and made a weak attempt to reach for her. From the look in his one remaining eye, she didn't need to be a Seer to guess what he was trying to do.

"Mobilicorpus." She waved her wand and Harry started floating a foot above the floor.

"No. Room…" He gasped when he noticed that they were heading towards the hospital wing.

McGonagall paused for a moment, then remembered that Harry was not someone the school nurse could treat.

"Akr'itor." Harry growled and McGonagall froze as Harry's equipment shimmered into sight.

* * *

"Vial…" Harry pointed weakly at a rack of a dozen feeding units. McGonagall quickly handed him a pair, and Harry opened the first and started pouring fresh blood on the open wound on his chest and stomach. After the wounds started healing, he moved it to his lips and started drinking, pausing only to switch to the second unit.

Once that was empty as well, his internal injuries were mostly healed, with only the lung damage and a few gashes here and there.

He stood up, shakily at first, but managed to recover his balance after a few moments.

With little ceremony, he plunged his hand in the wound on his chest and started pulling out the ribs lodged in his lung, pausing only to drink more blood or cough out the fluid that had gathered from the wound.

Meanwhile, McGonagall watched in morbid curiosity as he brought himself from the brink of death in the span of thirty minutes.

"Man, I'll have trouble breathing for a week." Harry finally spoke after coughing out a large wad of blood and lung.

"Mr. Potter, I demand to know how you ended up in such a sorry state." McGonagall finally snapped out of her daze.

"I'll tell you, professor, but could you do me a favor and clean up the blood I spilt and inform the Headmaster as well? This would give me some more time to recover." Harry sat down on his bed, breathing heavily. He cursed himself for forgetting the feeding units.

Twenty minutes later, McGonagall returned, followed by Dumbledore.

"I'd like to apologize for scaring you like that professor. I should have remembered the feeding units." Harry sighed.

"What were you doing, Harry?" Dumbledore asked as he sat down on one of the chairs in the room.

"That was therapy. I noticed I was developing the symptoms of Blood Rage and I decided to undergo the treatment before I entered the advanced stage and succumbed to the madness." Harry sighed. Admitting a weakness was not something any Lantrisi enjoyed.

"What exactly is this Blood Rage?" McGonagall asked.

"It's a rare psychological disorder that sometimes affects Lantrisi. The afflicted are consumed with bloodlust. They live to fight, feed and kill. Furthermore, the affected produce insane amounts of the Haze, a very potent mix of hormones and stimulants that our bodies can produce naturally, increasing their strength and speed several fold.

The only cure is to beat the affected to the brink of death, where the survival instincts kick in and stop the rage." Harry replied.

"Why didn't you tell us this? Didn't you think we had the right to know that it was possible for you to lose control like that?" McGonagall snapped.

"Blood Rage is not something we talk about openly. Such loss of control…" Harry said absently.

"I understand this is difficult for you. Will this happen again in the future?" Dumbledore asked him.

"No. You can't be affected again. I'm sorry I didn't tell you about it, but like I said, it's not something I'm willing to talk about." He sighed and waved his wand, hiding his equipment again.

"Professor." He called out as McGonagall was just leaving the room. "Thank you." He gave her a small smile.

"You're welcome, Daroth." She smiled back and walked out.

* * *

A small surprise to Harry was the return of Hagrid to Hogwarts. Harry was starting to get worried about the half-giant since he was supposed to get back several months ago.

"Harry, good to see you. Those lessons you gave me were a lifesaver, literally." Hagrid said jovially as Harry sat down across him in the man's hut.

"So, you got into a fight with a giant?" Harry asked curiously as he bit into a rock cake. Aptly named, they were hard enough to crack teeth, and Harry guessed that the only reason he could eat them was because his teeth were a crystalline composite that was almost as hard as diamond. Still, once you got past the hardness, they were surprisingly good.

"Yeah, which reminds me, here's your sword back." Harry quickly stashed the blade in his watch and took a sip of tea.

"Well, me and Olympe found the giants alright, and met with the gurg without trouble, along with the gifts we brought for him. First gave him a branch of Gubraithian fire. After some of the other giants translated for the gurg, we told him we would come again with another gift." Hagrid began.

"So, we went back the next day and gave him a goblin made battle helmet and talked to him. He seemed impressed, and again, we promised to return with another gift. That night though, things went wrong. There was a fight, and the next day, we learned that there was a new gurg in power." Hagrid sighed, remembering the day clearly.

"That would cause some trouble for the negotiations." Harry commented.

"Well, we hadn't gone all that way to give up so easily, so we went to meet with the new gurg. I noticed he didn't seem to like us, so I kept my eyes open. When I offered him a roll of dragon hide as a present, two of his mates tried to grab me, but I managed to avoid them. The gurg didn't like that and attacked me. I pulled the sword and stood my ground as you taught me. When he tried to smash me with his fist, I moved out of the way and slashed at his arm. You know, I didn't even feel it when it cut right through. He was really surprised when his forearm just fell off." Hagrid grinned savagely.

"So, did you kill him?" Harry asked, imagining the fight.

"Had to. Giants fight to the death. If I had left, he would have attacked me. I rushed him and cut off his leg at the knee, and when he collapsed, I jumped on his back and stabbed the sword in the back of his neck." Hagrid concluded the tale of his fight.

"So, I assume you became the new gurg, then?" Harry grinned, remembering what he had read about giants.

"That's the law, isn't it? Well, once the whole confusion cleared up, I found out there were a pair of Death Eaters also talking with the giants. They weren't happy when they realized I was the new gurg. I told the tribe to stomp them flat if they saw them poking around. The lot seemed very eager to obey." He laughed.

"I can imagine. So, why have you been delayed so much? I was told Madam Maxime returned months ago." Harry asked.

"Well, I had to find a new gurg, someone that wouldn't listen to Death Eaters, and had to lead a bunch of them back here." Hagrid replied.

"You brought giants back with you?" Harry gasped.

"Bout a dozen or so. They are what's left of the British tribes, and they were eager to get back to their old land. Dumbledore has a nice place for them up in the mountains. One of them is my brother. Well, half-brother, actually." Hagrid grinned.

"Your mother is dead, then?" Harry asked, expecting that to be the case. Hagrid was over fifty years old, after all, and giants didn't live any longer then most humans.

"Yeah, died years ago. I told them I would visit from time to time, teach them some things. Good thing I showed them I can fight, they don't respect half breeds a lot." Hagrid replied.

It was then that the hut's door opened and Umbridge walked in.

"Mr. Potter, what are you doing here?" She was surprised to see him in the hut this late, but since they were on holiday at the moment, she couldn't reprimand him from breaking curfew.

"Just visiting Hagrid. We became friends over the summer, and we were catching up. Well, catch you later." Harry stood up, glad that one of the few friends he had made in this world was safe and sound, and furthermore, it seemed Dumbledore got himself some really big help thanks to him.

Humming a tune, he headed back to the castle, feeling a bit better.


	9. Chapter 9

It's been a while, but now that RL isn't nagging me so much, I finally managed to get back to writing. The DoM massacre comes with the next chapter, and I hope I'll manage to write it in the next few days.

**Chapter 9**

The return of the students also brought with it new meetings of the DA on top of classes and everything else.

Things were going well until one particular DA meeting when while they were practicing the Patronus charm, Harry felt a large group trip his outermost ward. Considering the location and the hour, there was only one reason for that many people coming here. Quickly blowing the whistle around his neck, he shouted. "We've been discovered. Everyone get back to your dorms."

By the time half of the people were out, Harry felt the secondary ward being breached, and when the third alarm sounded off, only he and Hermione were left.

They rushed out, the door vanishing behind them. They just turned around the corner when Harry felt an invisible force trip him. Thanks to centuries of training and inhuman reflexes, he managed to stop himself before he fell, and even managed to catch Hermione before she slammed on the ground.

A moment later, they were surrounded by Slytherin students, and from the nauseating smell in the air, Umbridge was with them.

"Oh, it seems we caught the ringleader. Well done Draco, fifty points to Slytherin. See if you can round up more, they couldn't have gone far."

Umbridge grinned widely as she searched them both, taking their wands and the DA contract from Harry.

Meanwhile, Harry was busy glaring at Malfoy, who seemed too smug for his own good. 'That's it. I don't care how, but by the end of the year, one of them dies. Hope I manage to get them both.'

Lantrisi were violent, but they did not kill without a reason. To get under their skin took monumental effort, and that was something that Umbridge and Malfoy had the unwanted honor of accomplishing.

As they were lead towards the Headmaster's office, Harry's mind was too busy with images of various methods of killing Umbridge and Malfoy to contemplate anything else.

However, when they walked in, and Harry saw who was in the room, his mind rapidly went over a series of possible scenarios.

* * *

Dumbledore was sitting serenely behind his desk, while McGonagall was standing, stern faced next to it. The Minister and his assistant, one Percy Weasley if he remembered right were oh the other side of the desk. A pair of Aurors were standing guard near the door, while a huddled figure with their robe over their head stood in the corner. He recognized one of them, having met the man at the Order headquarters that summer.

Harry caught Dumbledore's eye, and signaled to the hidden knife he wore that Dumbledore knew about. The man gave a negative signal just as the man in question spoke.

"So Potter, do you know why you're here?" The portly man asked with a grin.

"No sir." Harry replied in his usual calm tone.

"So, you're not aware you have broken any school rules? Or Ministry decrees?"

"Not that I'm aware of." Harry continued calmly.

"So, you are not aware that an illegal student organization was discovered within the school?" Fudge was getting angry from his calm tone.

"Not to my knowledge no." Harry sounded remarkably convincing, deciding to play ignorant to the whole thing. It seemed Dumbledore caught on to the game as well, as his eyes showed a light twinkle that wasn't present a moment ago.

"I think we'll have more luck with our informant, Minister." Umbridge pointed to the huddled figure.

After a minute of coaxing, the figure pulled the robe down to reveal the ugliest hag ever seen in the magical world, making more then one person gasp and step back.

"Unfortunately, Minister, the group apparently had some sort of contract, and all Ms. Edgecombe managed to tell me was that if I went to hidden room on the seventh floor tonight, I would find something useful. She admitted that there was supposed to be some sort of meeting, but at that point, this curse activated, with what I also believe to be a strong silencing charm." Umbridge said impatiently.

"Don't we have a counter-curse for this?" Fudge said impatiently.

"I have been unable to reverse either, so far." Umbridge admitted.

'Like an incompetent moron like you could undo a Lantrisi enchantment. Pity I couldn't make it permanent.' Harry grinned inwardly.

"It doesn't matter Minister, I can continue from here. As I informed you last October, Potter had met several students in the Three Broomsticks, as witnessed by plenty of patrons that day. Several people present that day informed me of this meeting.

I was informed that the purpose of this meeting was to persuade these students to join an illegal society, whose purpose would be to study spells the Ministry had decided were inappropriate for school age…"

"I think you'll find you're wrong here Dolores." Dumbledore interrupted her. Privately, Harry had a good feeling what he would say, and he was not disappointed.

"Let's hear your cock-and-bull story then, Dumbledore." Fudge seemed ready to burst.

"Cornelius, no one here would deny that Harry was there that day, nor that he was trying to recruit members for a Defense against the Dark Arts group. I am simply saying that Dolores is wrong to say that this action was illegal, since the Ministry Decree banning such groups didn't come into effect until two days after this, so that would mean, Harry was not breaking any rules at the time." Both Fudge and Umbridge had a sour look on their face when they heard that, but Umbridge quickly recovered.

"That's fine Dumbledore, but if the first meeting was legal, all those that followed were not."

"I agree, if such meetings did indeed take place. Do you have any evidence of this Dolores?" Dumbledore asked amused.

"Evidence? Why do you think Ms. Edgecombe is here, Dumbledore?" Umbridge smiled.

"Oh, I was under the impression she was merely reporting a meeting tonight." Dumbledore continued serenely.

"Ms. Edgecombe, tell us how long have these meetings been going on. Just nod your head; I'm sure it won't make it any worse." Umbridge turned to the girl, who was trying her best to hide her face with her robes.

Harry was going to do something, but noticing Shacklebolt cast something at the girl, decided to stay put for the moment.

"Have they been happening for the last six months?" Umbridge asked.

Marietta stood still for a moment, then surprisingly, shook her head.

"What do you mean, my dear? There were meetings these last six months, right?" Umbridge was getting angry.

Again, Marietta shook her head.

"It appears that there had been no meetings, Dolores." Dumbledore smiled.

"Dolores, the meeting tonight, the one we DO know happened…" Fudge said in a tired voice.

"Yes, Minister. After Ms. Edgecombe tipped me off, I proceeded to the seventh floor with several trustworthy students, so as to catch them in the act. However, they appeared to be forewarned about my arrival, as by the time we got there, most of them were gone. But that doesn't matter, as we have all their names on this list, which I retrieved from Mr. Potter." She handed Fudge the DA contract.

"Excellent, Dolores, excellent, and, by thunder!" Fudge exclaimed.

"See what they named themselves. Dumbledore's Army." Fudge whispered.

* * *

Feeling that this has gone on long enough, Harry, who was standing close to the Aurors, moved like a flash and jabbed both men in a specific pressure point that would instantly knock them out.

Before anyone else could react to this attack, Harry had pulled his wand and stunned Percy and Marietta and disarmed Fudge and Umbridge.

"Phase one is complete, Headmaster. The army is standing by for phase three." Harry grinned evilly.

"Then we should proceed with phase two." Dumbledore grinned as well, not above a little fun at the expense of the man that's been giving him so much trouble lately.

"What is the meaning of this, Dumbledore?" Fudge hissed.

"Ask not for whom the bell tolls, Minister. It tolls for thee." Harry recited as he pulled out his combat dagger with his left hand from within his robes.

The man paled like a sheet and stared nervously at the vicious blade as Harry walked calmly towards him. He was just within striking distance when a pair of stunners hit them both.

"Spoilsport. I was this close to making him soil his robes." Harry pouted as he put his dagger away.

"As entertaining that was, I fear we can't waste time. I will need to alter their memories of this night." Dumbledore walked up to the Minister and pointed his wand at the man's head.

"So, what happens now?" Harry asked as he sat down, waiting for Dumbledore to finish.

"Now, I leave Hogwarts for a while, thanks to having my evil plot exposed. I trust you will be able to handle things by yourselves?" He turned to both Harry and McGonagall.

"We'll manage." Now get out, we'll wake them up." Harry grinned as Dumbledore grabbed his phoenix's tail and vanished in a ball of fire.

"Now that's an exit." Harry whistled as he and McGonagall revived the group.

"Where is he?" Fudge roared as he stood up.

"The stairs." The unknown Auror shouted and rushed down, followed by Shacklebolt, Umbridge and Percy.

"Well, Minerva, this seems to be the end of your friend Dumbledore." Fudge spoke nastily.

"You think so, do you?" She replied, but he didn't seem to hear as he looked around the office.

"You better get those two to bed." Fudge pointed at Harry and Marietta and rushed down the stairs.

"Come you two. Potter, before you go, could you…" She pointed at Marietta.

"I really shouldn't, but why not." He cast a few spells, and Marietta returned to normal.

"I can get back on my own, Professor. Good night." He said and him too, rushed down the stairs.

* * *

The fallout of Dumbledore's escape could be felt even weeks afterwards. Umbridge was quickly appointed the new Headmistress, but to her annoyance, the Headmaster's office had locked and refused to open no matter how hard she tried.

Also, the school erupted in pure chaos as prank after prank followed Umbridge like she was the harbinger of chaos.

In the midst of all this havoc, Harry remained his usual calm self, not letting anything disrupt his activities.

After all the mayhem the students had endured since Dumbledore's departure, the chaos of the O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. exams came as a gentle reprieve for the fifth and seventh year students.

For Harry, passing the tests was incredibly simple, and the exam week passed in his usual relaxed nature.

It was during the last exam that he was interrupted by a vision from Voldemort. It didn't take him long to discern the validity of the vision, and the realization that the whole thing was a trap made his face split into a wide grin, which fortunately, no one saw since his head was ducked over his test.

"Is something wrong, Harry?" Hermione asked once the History exam was over.

"Nothing much. Just had a vision sent by Riddle." Harry said calmly. Hermione, on the other hand, did not show such restraint, and gasped out in shock.

"You need to tell Dumbledore…" Her body froze in horror as a sickly sweet voice spoke from behind her. Harry had of course, already caught her scent, and had therefore timed his revelation to Hermione well, knowing the girl well enough to anticipate her reactions.

"Tell him what, Ms. Granger?" Umbridge had a huge grin on her face.

"No point in hiding it anymore. We need to tell him the weapons are ready." Harry sighed deeply.

"What weapons?" Umbridge frowned along with Hermione.

"The ones for the attack on the Ministry. Not a word, Hermione, you can't talk me out of it. I don't want to go to jail over this." Harry silenced the girl before she could ask what the hell he was talking about.

"Where are these weapons?" Umbridge asked quickly.

"In the forest. Should I take you there?" Harry asked.

"You shall, but first, give me your wands." They both complied and were soon out of the castle and into the forest.

"Are we close yet?" Umbridge asked after five minutes of walking through the forest.

"A bit further, Headmistress." Harry grinned.

"What are you planning, Harry?" Hermione whispered harshly.

"You'll see." Harry stopped in a small clearing and seemed to sniff the air. Then, to everyone's surprise, four arrows burst from the leaves and buried themselves into Harry's torso.

"Begone, beast, or we will finish you." A group of centaurs followed the arrows and soon had them surrounded.

"You think mere arrows can kill me?" Harry growled as he tore the arrows from his chest, flinging them away with disdain.

"Then we will try other means." One centaur rushed him, holding a massive spear in his hand. Just as he was about to impale him, Harry dodged the strike with inhuman speed, and using the spin of the dodge, rammed his fist in the centaur's chest.

A loud crunch was heard as the power of the strike and the centaur's momentum collided and caved in its chest. The centaur collapsed and remained still.

"Who's next?" Harry grinned as the centaurs seemed to have lost their bravado. After a few tense moments, they turned and galloped away.

"Harry, I don't feel so good." He turned to the source of the voice, and for the first time in months, his face changed from its usual calmness to an expression of shock and fear.

* * *

Hermione was lying on the ground, and on her face he saw a thin splatter of blood. More importantly, his blood.

"No." He whispered as he rushed towards her, but in his mind, he knew he was too late to do anything to stop the conversion process.

"Potter, wha…" Before the shocked Umbridge could continue, a dagger suddenly embedded into her throat, silencing her forever.

"Sorry I had to make it quick, but I have more important things to take care of." Harry retrieved his blade with little ceremony, and once the woman was dead, he transfigured her body into a fallen log that matched the surroundings. Then, he picked up a shivering Hermione and vanished with a very soft pop.

"Harry, what are you doing here? What's wrong with her?" Sirius got the shock of his life when his godson burst into HQ with a shivering Hermione in his arms.

"No time to explain." Harry rushed into one of the bedrooms, where he transfigured the bed into a steel table with thick leather straps attached to it. He deposited Hermione on it and strapped her in tightly.

"Harry, what the hell are you doing?" Sirius couldn't contain his shock anymore.

"I'll explain later. Right now, I have to go to the Ministry. Voldemort has an ambush waiting for me in the Hall of Prophecies." He locked the door to Hermione's room with a Lantrisi locking spell and turned towards the door.

"And you're actually going to go there? Are you crazy?" Sirius grabbed his hand, only to receive Harry's wand between his eyes.

"When you wake up, alert the Order and send them there." With that, Harry cast a spell, stunning him for at least a couple of hours. He figured it would be enough to take care of the ambushers by that time.

"They have no idea what is coming at them." His face split into a sinister grin as his fangs elongated at his thoughts of carnage.


	10. Chapter 10

This was a challenge to write, and I went through five drafts before I ending with this one. Hope you'll like it.

**Chapter 10**

By the time Harry entered the Ministry, it was already late enough that there was no one there. It took him a few minutes, but he managed to find his destination, the Hall of Prophecies.

He stood before the prophecy Voldemort wanted him to get, his sensitive nose catching the scents of his hidden ambushers with ease. Deciding not to keep them waiting, he grabbed the glass orb and lifted it off the shelf.

"Nicely done, Potter. Now, hand it over and we won't kill you." Lucius Malfoy smirked as he and a bunch of other Death Eaters appeared on both ends of the aisle between the shelves.

"Don't you mean, not yet?" Harry grinned as he pocketed the orb and sealed it inside his jacket. Instead of robes, he wore loose pants, a shirt and a jacket. He anticipated combat and decided to wear something easier to move in.

"Hand it over boy, and we'll make it quick." Another Death Eater said with a smirk.

"Oh, where's the fun in that?" Harry's wand that was hanging loosely by his side suddenly released a blinding flash of light, catching them by surprise. When their vision finally cleared, Harry was gone.

"The hunt is on. Come and get me, if you can." Harry's voice echoed through the hall.

* * *

"Spread out and find him, quickly, before he escapes. Try and herd him towards the room of doors, Bellatrix and I will stand there to keep him from getting out." Lucius commanded and the crowd quickly divided.

"When I get my hands on that damn brat, he'll wish he stayed where he was." McNair growled as he and Rabastan moved through the darkened corridors of the Department of Mysteries, looking for Harry.

"The brat is probably cowering in fear in some corner." Rabastan grinned widely, but suddenly, he felt a sharp jab in his back and his body locked up and refused to move.

He saw Harry pass by him, holding a sinister looking dagger in his hand as he stalked behind McNair.

"Rabastan, go check…" McNair turned towards his partner, only to see Rabastan standing stock still. The next moment, there was a flash of steel, and a sudden pain in his neck.

Harry was standing calmly before him, his face and body splattered by the sudden burst of blood from McNair's throat.

"You were going to make me regret something? Well go on, I'm waiting." Harry smirked as the dying man tried to aim his wand at him in a last feeble attempt before he collapsed, lifeless on the ground.

"Now, what to do with you?" Harry smirked evilly as he began to circle Rabastan. From the look in his eyes, if the man could speak, he would be screaming in terror right now.

* * *

Lucius and Bellatrix stood into the Room of Doors for half an hour now, and were feeling bored out of their minds.

"Honestly, how long does it take for ten adult wizards to capture one untrained boy?" Lucius grumbled.

As if tempting fate with his words, one of the doors slammed open, and Antonin Dolohov rushed out.

It took Lucius and Bellatrix just one look to figure out something was very wrong. Dolohov was splattered with blood, and his face was frozen in an expression of pure terror.

He stumbled into the room, his eyes catching his comrade's with a pleading look.

Then, the duo felt their breath stop in their throats as a long blade suddenly erupted from Dolohov's chest and the man was lifted up.

"I turned towards the man, and looking into his eyes, I told him, 'Ask not for whom the bell tolls'," Harry's voice could be heard from behind Dolohov. With a swing of his arm, he flung the man to the side, the monomolecular edge easily cutting through the torso. "'It tolls for thee.'"

A shiver of fear passed through Lucius at the sight of Harry. His face was spread in a manic grin, with a pair of impossibly long and thin fangs glinting in his mouth. His eyes were a burning red and seemed to stare into his very soul.

The worst were his clothes, though. He was completely soaked with blood, there was not a square inch on his body that wasn't covered with the liquid. Despite that, his clothes still remained looking like they were dry, and only made him look more inhuman.

Now, while Lucius stood firm in the face of this terrible image, Bellatrix let out a soft whimper and collapsed against the wall, muttering nonsense.

"What the hell are you?" Lucius snarled, all thought on completing his mission long gone from his mind.

"When you get to hell, they'll tell you." Harry's grin grew wider and rushed Lucius, but the wizard managed to evade the sword strike and as he finished his roll, sent out a blasting curse at Harry that managed to send the sword out of his hand.

This proved useless, however, when Harry managed to pin Lucius to the wall.

"Tell me, do you fear death?" Harry's breath stank of blood, and that, coupled with his visage, instilled a terror in Lucius that Voldemort never managed to.

"Yes." He managed to choke out. Harry's iron grip around his throat didn't help him much.

"Good. That makes the blood so much more sweeter." With that, Harry sunk his fangs into his neck, piercing his artery and greedily sucking the gout of blood that burst forth.

* * *

His meal was interrupted when he heard Bellatrix open a door. He dropped the still alive Lucius on the floor, and after taking his sword and walking to the door, he casually sent a blasting curse at him, painting the floor and wall with his blood and brains.

Bellatrix managed to reach the Atrium and was almost at the exit area when Harry emerged from the elevator and summoned her back to him.

"Please, I'm a good girl, don't hurt me, please." She muttered continuously. Harry saw the confusion mixed with the fear in her eyes, and realized that the stay in Azkaban had damaged her mind more then people thought, and Harry had just managed to break whatever small shred of sanity she had remaining.

"Yes, you are a good girl. Everything will be alright now; all the pain will go away." Harry smirked lightly as he spoke in a soothing tone as he stroked her hair. Slowly, Bellatrix relaxed, and almost lovingly, Harry bit into her neck, letting her blood flow into his mouth.

"I'm… a good… girl…" Bellatrix finally passed away from the blood loss, and once her heart stopped beating, Harry dropped her to the ground and stabbed into her neck to cover the bite marks.

* * *

"Are you going to come out now?" Harry spoke to the seemingly empty room.

"A most impressive performance, Potter. I did not expect a being of your…efficiency." With a ripple of distorted air, Voldemort himself appeared before him.

Harry took a moment to evaluate the man he's been hearing about for since his arrival. He was very tall, and so pale he looked almost translucent. His head was bald, while his face was serpentine, with angry red eyes and two slits instead of a nose.

"So, you are Lord Voldemort. It is an honor." Harry gave him a short bow.

"The honor is all mine. You have my prophecy?" Voldemort bowed as well, before taking a combat stance.

"Right here. It is yours, if you can take it." Harry patted his pocket and he too took a combat stance, sword and wand at the ready.

"It seems I am at a disadvantage. Allow me to rectify the situation." Voldemort waved his wand in a complex pattern, and a long sword with a serpentine blade, along with a pair of entwined snakes as a pommel appeared.

"The sword of my ancestor, Salazar Slytherin. None have faced it, and lived." Voldemort smirked.

"Until today." With that, Harry rushed forward, swinging his sword at Voldemort's neck. To his surprise, Voldemort blocked the strike and moved his wand to curse him.

Harry moved back from the block and managed to deflect the curse with his sword and then move it to block a strike from Voldemort. The man was surprisingly strong, and Harry had to push with almost his full power to stop Voldemort's blade.

* * *

"I never expected you to provide such a challenge. I will enjoy killing you." Harry was panting heavily after almost an hour of fighting. Not only had Voldemort managed to match his strength and speed, he also matched his healing ability.

"You have pushed me further then any opponent I've ever faced before. For that, I will remember you once you are dead." Voldemort was also showing signs of fatigue, but he wasn't beaten yet.

As they were tensing for another clash, flashes of green and the roar of fire behind Harry signaled the activation of the floo, and moments later, dozens of people filled the Atrium. The Ministry workers gasped in fear at the sight of Voldemort, who screamed in anger before vanishing with a crack.

"Look, that's Sirius Black." One man screamed, and soon all eyes were turned at the group of people from the Order.

"Arrest him at once." The Minister commanded, and a pair of Aurors rushed to comply, only to find Harry's sword blocking their path.

"I don't think so."

"Mr. Potter, if you don't let us through, you'll be arrested for aiding a fugitive." One of them said with a glare.

While most of the blood on him dropped off during the few times he was forced to disperse his body into smoke to avoid Voldemort's sword, his body was still coursing with the Haze, which left him with the red tinge in his eyes, making the Aurors nervous when he leveled them with his glare.

"If Voldemort couldn't bring me down, what makes you think you two have any chance?" Harry smirked when the pair flinched at the name.

"May I ask why you are protecting Black? After all, he was the one that betrayed your parents." An older witch with a monocle stepped forward from the crowd of Ministry workers.

"He is innocent. In fact, he swore an Unbreakable Vow to me that he was not the traitor." Sirius had done no such thing, but they didn't know that. "If you require further proof, I am sure he would be more then willing to take Veritaserum to prove his innocence."

"Very well. I will schedule a trial for next week. You will be interrogated then and your guilt or innocence will be determined then. Until then, I will ask you to remain confined at your current residence under guard by Auror Tonks." The woman turned to Sirius, who nodded with a grin.

* * *

"It's a bloodbath. The entire Department of Mysteries if covered in corpses." One man stumbled from the elevator and emptied his stomach.

Seeing an opportunity to save some of his image, Fudge quickly turned to Harry. "Would you care to explain this, Mr. Potter?"

"I'm as confused as you are, Minister. I admit I killed Bellatrix here in self-defense, but the others were still alive when I escaped them in the Hall of Prophecies. In fact, I was trying to get out before the others came when Voldemort ambushed me." Harry replied calmly.

"Dawlish, check his wand." The minister ordered angrily, while Madam Bones only grinned wider at the spectacle. This would greatly aid her political aspirations. With a little luck, she would have Fudge ousted and herself in the Minister's chair within a month.

To her immense satisfaction, Harry's wand only showed a combination of Stupefy and Incarcerous for as far as the spell could show them. Fudge spluttered, but could not do a thing.

"If that is all, I would like to leave. It's been a long night." Harry yawned, making sure his fangs were retracted to their normal length.

"One last thing, Mr. Potter. You said you were in the Hall of Prophecies. Did you take something from there?" Madam Bones asked, and instantly, the hall fell silent.

"Perhaps." With that, Harry stepped into the elevator that lead to London and was gone before anyone could question him.

* * *

Several minutes later, everyone gathered in the kitchen of the Order HQ, all wondering what the hell happened that night.

Adding to the confusion was the fact that the moment Harry walked in, a man rushed him, fists clenched and ready to beat him to a paste, only for Harry to effortlessly pin him on the ground.

"I've had a long night, and I'm not in the mood for anymore fighting." Harry growled.

"What did you do to my daughter, you bastard? I demand you let me see her at once." The man snapped, trying to break free.

"I see. You brought them here, then?" Harry turned to Dumbledore and noticed the unknown woman staring at him in fear.

"They had the right to know their daughter was in danger." Dumbledore replied.

"Fair enough." Harry released the man and collapsed in a chair with a long sigh.

"What happened tonight, Harry?" Sirius asked.

"I went there, killed all the Death Eaters and fought Voldemort before you lot arrived." He smirked. The final traces of the Haze were clearing, and with it, his bloodlust, viciousness and sadistic desires were fading as well.

"But they tested your wand." One man protested.

"They tested this wand. This wand, however…" Harry pulled out the mithril wand with a wide smirk.

"Smart thinking, lad. I like your style." Moody gave him a grin.

"So, you faced Tom. What are your impressions of him?" Dumbledore asked.

"My respect for you has certainly grown, old man. Even when I went all out, I didn't manage to beat him. I honestly can't say who would have tired out first." Harry said in a bitter tone. To admit defeat was a hard blow for a person with his training and experience.

"I see. This is most troubling." Dumbledore's face was grim, since he knew just what Harry going all out meant.

"Excuse me, but may I ask what has happened to my daughter?" Mrs. Granger asked nervously.

"She is not in any danger, and you'll be able to see her in two days." Harry said cryptically.

"I want to see her now." Mr. Granger demanded.

"Trust me, it is not something you wish to see, nor is it safe for you. If you get contaminated, you will die." Harry's words disturbed the parents more than anything else did that night.

"You said she was not in danger." Mrs. Granger protested.

"She's young enough. Her body can adapt. You, on the other hand are too old." Harry stood up and walked towards the door.

"Adapt to what?" Mr. Granger asked with a voice laced with confusion and fear.

"The life of a hunter." With those last words, Harry walked out and to one of the bedrooms.


	11. Chapter 11

Well, another chapter done, and I hope you'll like it. I know I promised that a new chapter of Epic would come out soon as well, but I'm afraid I'm a bit blocked on that one. Updates to all my stories will unfortunately remain irregular. As some of you know, I may post a chapter a day, or drag one out for a month. Hopefully, my muse will find me again and updates will become more frequent.

**Chapter 11**

The next two days remained tense as Harry moved often between HQ and Hogwarts, with the Grangers glaring at him every time they passed. Hermione's state took a momentary backseat when the Aurors in the Order gave their report to the rest of the Order about the events in the Department of Mysteries.

"It was a bloodbath, pure and simple. I doubt the bastards even stood a chance. Some were simply stabbed, others had their heads blown apart, and two were even hacked to pieces. There were two kills that were very different, though." Moody paused, his body shuddering at the memory.

"Crabbe was found impaled to the wall by his own torn off arm. The wound was cauterized, and the stab missed any vital organs, so he was still alive when they found him. The medics managed to save his life, but the experience drove him insane. Rabastan was found hanging by his legs with his skin completely removed. The forensics team determined that he was alive almost until the very end."

"I was in a hurry." Harry complained, making the people sitting next to him edge away from him.

"What sort of a monster are you?" Mr. Granger shivered.

"The kind…" Harry paused suddenly and turned his head to the side. "Hermione's awake."

With that, he stood up and rushed away before anyone could react.

* * *

Hermione was slowly stirring, and by her movements, she had realized that she was restrained.

"You're safe, Hermione." Harry said softly as he removed the restraints and raised her head.

"Wha…" Hermione said weakly, but her words were stopped by the feeding unit pressed to her lips. For the next ten minutes, she drank, replenishing her greatly depleted reserves of blood. Only afterwards did she realize what it was she was drinking, and she jumped away from Harry in shock.

"What did you do to me?" She screamed and rushed out the door.

"Wait." Harry rushed to follow and got out of the room just as Hermione passed a room that let sunlight into the hall.

Her scream of agony as her left sight burst into flame drew everyone into the hall, and the group watched in silent horror as Harry managed to pull her back into the shade.

"Help me." Harry screamed, and it seemed to shake Hermione's parents from their stupor as they rushed towards them.

"Get her into the bathtub and plug the drain." Harry pointed to the nearest bathroom and rushed away to his room. He returned with a dozen feeding units by the time they were finished.

"Is she going to be alright?" Mrs. Granger whispered.

"It will take a few hours, but she will heal." Harry replied as he filled the tub with blood. Hermione surfaced moments after her head was submerged, the left side of her face already cracking as new tissue pushed the burnt flesh away.

"You need to stay under as long as possible. Take a deep breath and go back down." Harry's voice was gentle as he slowly pushed her back down.

"How come you don't burn?" Mr. Granger asked.

"She'll become immune in about a month." Harry replied shortly.

"There's one thing I don't understand. I've read about vampires from Hermione's books, and you're nothing like them." Mrs. Granger turned towards Harry.

"I am not a magical vampire, I am a Lantrisi. They are vampires who exist in a different universe." Harry replied shortly.

"Hashera." Hermione whispered as she emerged for a breath. Already, most of the burnt flesh had fallen off and new flesh had started to grow over the bone.

"Good, you're starting to access the Link." Harry grinned.

"What does that mean? And won't her wounds get infected? This is hardly sanitary." Mr. Granger asked, his worry overcoming his anger.

"Lantrisi immune systems are far more resilient. Foreign organisms cannot survive in our blood. As to what she meant, Hashera is the Lantrisi capital world, and she got that information from the psychic interlink that all Lantrisi use for communication and data storage." Harry replied.

Finally, Hermione recovered enough to be removed from the tub, and her parents went to hug her, but were stopped by Harry.

"Right now, she's ten times stronger then a human with almost no control over that force. She could snap you in half without even meaning to." Hermione sagged at that.

"Don't worry; I have a solution for that." Harry pulled out a metal bracelet from his pocket and put it on her wrist. The bracelet immediately constricted until it was a tight fit on her wrist. Harry pressed a few small buttons on it, and Hermione shivered as he pressed the last one.

"This is a restraining bracelet. It sends a constant signal to your brain, limiting the maximal amount of force your muscles can exert." Harry grinned as she perked up and took her parents in a tight hug.

"We need to talk about all this." Hermione gave Harry a firm look.

* * *

Harry nodded and led them to the library, which was empty. The others had decided that the four of them needed to sort things out between them first before talking to the others.

"The first thing I want to know is can this be reversed?" Mr. Granger asked the moment they sat down.

"If we were on Hashera, maybe. Even then, the survival process is one in fifteen." Harry replied in a grim tone.

"Will I need to kill?" Hermione whispered nervously.

"The feeding units I have will provide us with the blood we need. Your other predatory urges can easily be sated by sparring with me." Harry replied, and he noticed she was greatly relieved to hear this.

"Can you tell us more about the Lantrisi?" Mrs. Granger asked.

"Sure. The Lantrisi originated from Lanus Deathhand, who is the first Lantrisi in existence. He was born a human on Earth somewhere around 3000 BC, when he was taken by a ship of the Derashan Empire, who used him as a subject for their super soldier project. They used genetic alterations as well as controlled hyper-evolutions to create the ultimate fighter. Their experiment exceeded all their expectations.

Afraid that they would be unable to contain him since their force field technology was very primitive at the time, they sent him back to Earth. We uncovered this information around nine centuries ago, when we discovered the destroyed remains of the Derashan home world.

His life was long and hard, and at the turn of the 21st century, he was captured and frozen. Several centuries later, he was released, and he restored the Lantrisi Collective as a part of the Galactic Alliance. Disagreements and conflicts with Alliance leadership led to the first war between the two factions and the establishment of the Collective as an independent power in the galaxy.

At the time of my departure, the Collective held eighty two star systems, with a population of over one hundred and sixty billion Lantrisi, and over a hundred billion people living under our control." Harry's information shocked the two humans.

"How advanced are your people?" Mr. Granger asked in awe.

"They are the most advanced race in the known galaxy." Harry grinned and flipped his watch open and pulled his sword out. "Flat space technology. It converts three-dimensional objects into two-dimensional, thus allowing you to store immense volume inside little space. There is also no gravity inside, so weight is not an issue as well. Next, take this sword." Mr. Granger did so, only to drop to the ground from the weight.

"Pure kershin metal. The metal itself is practically indestructible. Tests proved that it can even withstand the intense gravitational forces of a singularity over a period of one standard week of un-dilatated time. It weighs around hundred and fifty pounds, and the edge is sharpened by nano-processing to a monomolecular edge. The weight, sharpness and Lantrisi strength combine into a weapon you do not want to tangle with." Harry grinned as he returned his blade back into his watch.

"I wish I could see it all." Hermione whispered, caught in the sights her mind presented to her. It all seemed so surreal.

"One day, you might. The primary drawback of being Lantrisi is the immortality it brings. That's one of the reasons we don't interact much with other races. It's hard to form ties when you know you'll outlive the people you care about." Harry sighed.

"How old are you?" Hermione asked.

"Almost seven hundred years. Fortunately, we managed to set the temporal coordinates for my return within a rather narrow margin." Harry grinned.

"So, what happens now?" Mr. Granger asked.

"First, we'll tell the others what is going on. Tomorrow, I'll start teaching and training Hermione." Harry's grin didn't left the girl with a good feeling.

* * *

The Order was shocked by his information, but the more practical members like Moody and Shacklebolt quickly saw the benefit a trained military officer could bring to their group. While they were trained Aurors, they were still trained as law enforcement. Harry quickly helped them organize their various cells, as well as giving them tips on how to conduct combat operations.

* * *

"Again." Harry stood in a ready stance as Hermione slowly dragged herself up and wiped the stream of blood from her mouth. Her wheezing made it clear that at least one of her lungs was punctured.

She rushed him, trying to land a hit on him, only for her attack to be stopped without effort, and her defenses demolished with ease.

"You're progressing well. I am certain you'll master the basics of the Crushing Fist by the end of the summer. Now set your ribs back in place and return to your studies. I expect a ten page report on the first Lantrisi-Alliance war by tomorrow." Hermione growled before leaving the room.

"You think she'll finish it this time?" Sirius asked.

"Not a chance. There is too much relevant information to go through. The point of the task is not to have her do the report, but to get her to work smarter. The Link already has dozens of such reports. All she has to do is alter one of them and she'll pass. Hell, she just has to pick one, copy it and sign her name on the top." Harry grinned.

"What will that teach her, other then that you approve of cheating?" Tonks frowned.

"It will teach her that she is not alone. The Collective takes care of its own in every way. Now, let's continue our lessons." Harry turned to Sirius who was teaching him the Animagus transformation.

The potion that was usually taken to reveal a person's inner animal was useless in Harry's case, as was practically every other potion. All the formulas were made with human or humanoid recipients in mind. There were differences in a potion for a human and one for a goblin, for example. For Harry, who was far different internally then any other race on Earth, there were no potions that would likely work on him, so he had to find his inner beast the hard way, through meditation.

It wasn't the meditation itself that was giving him trouble, but the rather unique way it was done for this purpose. It was simply not something he had done before, and it took him a while to get the hang of it.

"Any luck this time?" Sirius asked after Harry snapped out of his trance.

"Yeah, I found my form, and no, I won't tell you what it is. I want to keep it a surprise until I transform." Harry grinned as Sirius pouted.

"Alright, be that way. The transformation itself is relatively simple. All you need to do is draw upon the image of your inner beast, thinking about everything you know of the creature, and push your magic throughout your body and will yourself to change." Sirius explained.

Harry nodded and closed his eyes as he focused. For several minutes, nothing happened, then his skin and clothes began to darken and his hair to turn white. In moments, his clothes turned into a tattered robe as his body appeared decayed. A sudden chill filled the room as he floated up. A hollow, rasping chuckle echoed from his cowl as he landed again and returned back to normal.

"I somehow thought you'd be a wolf or a bat." Tonks commented.

"The form surprised me as well. It was a really weird feeling, I'll tell you that. I could sense every person in the house, and I could taste your emotions. Still, the shape has its advantages." Harry grinned as picked up a large glass of pumpkin juice. He grimaced when he noticed it was warm, but a moment later, the glass in his hand frosted over. With a smirk, he walked away.

"Tell me he didn't just use a bloody Dementor's aura to chill his drink." Tonks turned to her cousin.

"That boy has a pair made of solid diamond. I'm so proud." Sirius grinned as he wiped a mock tear from his eye.

* * *

Outside Hogwarts, things weren't so good, unfortunately. Ever since Voldemort was exposed, he began a reign of terror that was positively staggering. Four Muggle villages were completely decimated, a bridge and tunnel in the London area were destroyed, causing massive casualties, and several prominent witches and wizards were attacked, some by Voldemort himself.

Without Harry's tactical advice, Amelia Bones, Rufus Scrimgeour as well as other high ranking Ministry officials that were unlikely to support Voldemort's efforts would have been killed. Fortunately for them, the Order warned them that they were a very likely target, and together with the Order, they took steps to ensure they had an escape route ready.

Following the wake of attacks, Amelia Bones rose to the position of Minister, and not only did she greatly increase the number of people in law enforcement, but also gave the Order an official Ministry sanction to operate as they saw fit against Voldemort. On top of that, she also purged the Ministry from the most extreme purebloods, recognizing them as a source of information and influence for Voldemort.

Despite Harry's insistence, Dumbledore absolutely forbid the use of lethal force in their conflicts with the Death Eaters, and also refused to allow Harry to participate in their operations. Harry did not take this well, and only the quick intervention of Fawkes, who sensed the peril his bonded was in and quickly flashed in and got him out right before Harry's fist caved in his skull. Instead, Harry opened a new window into the kitchen wall. The fact that the wall was heavily enchanted against damage led to the others to give him a rather wide berth for the next few days.

* * *

It was a week before Dumbledore showed his face again, and even then, took great care to stay as far away from Harry as he could.

"Is it complete?" Harry turned to his godfather as he and Remus Lupin walked in. While Harry quickly bonded with Sirius, Remus was a different matter. On one hand, the man wanted to get to know the son of his friends a lot better, but on the other, his werewolf side was completely terrified from Harry, and every time he got close, he had the urge to run away and don't look back.

"All we need to do is input the signature of what we wish to monitor." Sirius replied as he waved his wand and a large map of the world unrolled from the table and stuck itself on one of the walls of the kitchen/meeting room of HQ.

"I have that right here. I just finished the scans on professor Snape's mark." Harry pulled out a stack of parchment filled with long columns of strange text.

"Right here. This is the signature needed." Harry read one of the sheets and pulled his wand out. Together with Sirius, they imprinted the signature of the Dark Mark onto the map, and slowly, black dots started popping up here and there.

"This is going to be harder then I thought." Harry whistled as finally, no more dots appeared. The problem was, the map was showing them hundreds of Death Eaters spread all over the world.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

"We lost four men in the last raid. They caught us in an ambush just as we apparated in." Moody reported grimly. August had rolled in, and the Order and the Ministry had made only marginal progress. Having analyzed the first war against Voldemort, Harry knew that if Voldemort hadn't disappeared when he attacked him, he would have been victorious.

"We are at a major disadvantage. We know where his forces are, and we can respond immediately, but the fact remains we have less men, less training and less resources." Harry commented.

"I beg your pardon? Are you suggesting Death Eaters are better trained then Aurors?" This was a tactical meeting, so all the active core members were gathered. They were the only ones who knew what Harry was, and it was they who coordinated the various Order cells as well as recruitment. In fact, the Order now had close to three hundred men along with the four hundred Aurors and Magical Law enforcement. Totally, they had about six hundred against Voldemort's four hundred.

"Aurors are trained to subdue, not kill. The fact remains, if we don't change our tactics, we will fail." Harry's grim tone echoed through the suddenly silent room.

"What do you suggest?" Moody asked. He knew Harry had something planned.

"We need to counter the Death Eaters in a way they won't expect. All I need is a hundred men, preferably with some experience in the Muggle world. Give me two, three weeks and they'll be ready to take care of the Death Eaters effectively." Harry explained with a grin.

"Harry, the Order are not soldiers. You cannot expect them…" Dumbledore offered his protests once again, but this time, he and everyone else fell silent at the sight of a knife, buried deeply in the table, right between his fingers. In fact, it had effectively nailed said hand down, preventing him from moving.

"I will say this only once. I respect your power and wisdom, as well as you yourself as a person. But, I have the most military experience here, not you, and if you ever try to interfere in my plans again, I will kill you." Harry's tone remained calm as he stood up and pulled the knife out of the table.

"As I was saying, select one hundred men and have them gather here in three days." Harry pointed at a location on the map. It showed an area somewhere in Wales.

"Why there?" Moody frowned.

"You'll see. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some shopping to do." With that, he stood back up and walked out of the room.

* * *

"What the hell are we doing here? I thought we were supposed to be training." One of the Order members protested as he saw Moody pass by.

"We're waiting for your instructor. It won't be long now." With that, Moody hobbled away before the man could say anything further.

It wasn't long before the crowd could hear a slowly approaching rumble, and more then one jumped on his feet, wand in hand. To their surprise, the source of the sound was three large Muggle trucks along with a jeep. The Muggleborn in the crowd recognized the military tarps and markings, which only added to their confusion.

Moody and Shacklebolt watched in curious awe as Harry Potter got out of the jeep, talked with the drivers of the trucks a bit, then, to the surprise of the Aurors, the men saluted him, and after Harry returned the salute, the three drivers got into the jeep and drove away.

"What the bloody hell, Potter?" Moody growled.

"Compliments of her Majesty's Army, Moody. Please tell the Minister to mention to the PM we borrowed some equipment from the army." Harry grinned widely.

"You borrowed what exactly, and how did you manage it? I know for a fact that getting military equipment is not easy." Shacklebolt asked with a frown.

"Give me some credit, Kingsley, I am a trained infiltrator after all. I had the right forms, the right orders and the right papers. Now, let me show you what good old Saint Nick brought you kiddies for Christmas." With a grin, he moved to the trucks, pointing to each as he spoke. "Weapons and explosives, ammunition, uniforms and auxiliary equipment."

* * *

While the two Aurors were busy picking their jaws from the ground, Harry used a Sonorus charm to address the other Order members.

"Excuse me everyone, sorry to have kept you waiting, but we are now ready to begin your training. First, unload everything from the trucks, but before you do, I will ask you to surrender your wands."

This was met with shouts of outrage from all over the crowd.

"You mean we can't use magic? I thought we were here to learn how to fight." One man was the most vocal.

"You are here to learn how to win a fight. Tell me, what is the maximal distance that you can hit a man reliably with a spell?" Harry asked.

"About thirty feet." The man's tone held pride at the fact.

"Pretty impressive." Harry grinned and went to the boot of one of the trucks and returned with a handgun in his left hand and a rifle in his right.

"This is a Browning handgun. A trained user can hit a target from a hundred to a hundred-fifty feet." With that, Harry aimed the gun at a rock that was about a hundred feet from him and fired. The bang startled more than one person, and the mark that the gun made in the rock was startlingly obvious to the assembled wizards and witches.

"This is the SA80 rifle. A trained user can hit a target at over a thousand feet." Seeing the disbelieving faces in the crowd, Harry aimed the rifle at a small tree over a thousand feet away and fired three shots which easily tore off the top branches of the tree.

"Each of you will be given a Browning pistol and trained in its use, as for the rest of weapons, you will first be divided into squads of ten where some will be using the SA80, while others will be using different weapons. And lastly, ten of you will be trained for sniper rifles. Now, hand over your wands to Moody and Shacklebolt and start unloading the trucks. You will find tents and bed rolls in that truck. I want a camp set up by nightfall." Harry explained, but after a minute, nobody had moved yet. With an annoyed expression, Harry fired a shot in the air which shook the group out of their stupor.

"Get to it before I shoot you. You will set up the camp in two hours or you will not get any food." Harry shouted.

"You can't do that." One woman grumbled as she and her friend carried several bed rolls to the clearing.

"You are here because you felt that the Death Eaters are wrong, and you wanted to stop them. Am I wrong?" Harry's voice was almost a growl as he bore down on the woman, who had shrunk down and was shivering a bit.

"No sir." She managed to stammer out.

"Then you will follow my instructions to the letter, and I promise you, once you're done here, it is the Death Eaters who will be afraid." Harry grinned widely. "Now, carry on."

* * *

The trucks were unloaded and the camp set up with over thirty minutes to spare, and while the crowd was resting and eating dinner, Harry spent time going through the camp, talking with each individual, trying to determine their role in the platoons.

Harry had also spent some time discussing certain equipment requirements with Sirius, who recruited Remus, Hermione and the Weasley twins in the creative process and together, they managed to provide Harry with what he needed. Combined with some Lantrisi spells, Harry had everything he needed for his little army.

The first few days were the hardest since Harry had to carefully explain how to correctly use the weapons they were going to use, as well as going over the safety instructions several times until he was sure everyone understood them. The next obstacle was getting the rather lazy wizards and witches into a proper physical shape. It was not nearly as rigorous as what the Muggle army demanded, but there was still a lot of complaints and glares aimed at Harry.

* * *

"How are they coming up?" Moody asked as they sat, observing the various teams training across the clearing. The two weeks of intense training showed in the groups, and for the first time in many years, Moody felt like they had a chance in this war.

"We'll be able to field the snipers out tomorrow. I suggest putting two pairs each on an eight hour rotation in both Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley, with a pair standing by as a reserve. That way, if the Death Eaters try anything, they'll get a real surprise." Harry grinned. He had replaced the bullets in the sniper rounds with kershin metal instead of lead. Kershin was a complex alloy that while very difficult to produce, especially on Earth, didn't require any extraterrestrial materials. It was basically metallic impact explosive. A hit in the head or torso guaranteed very messy results, since a single bullet had the explosive force of one stick of TNT.

"And the rest of the teams?" Moody asked.

"They'll be ready by the end of the week." Harry replied. Each team was divided into three parts. Two squads with four men each, and a pair consisting of a medic and communications and observation specialist. The latter also served as the CO of the team. Sirius had used parts of the enchantments present on special mirrors he and Harry's father used during their school days to design something like magical radios. Each teammate had a short necklace and an earring which served as a mouth and ear piece. Also, they made maps, linked with their large one that allowed their teams to monitor, in real time every person in the engagement zone.

The two squads were all armed with Brownings, two grenades each, three SA80's and one of them was carrying a Minimi light machinegun. Also, the teams managed to enchant the weapons, eliminating recoil, reducing their weight and silencing them. With this equipment and their training, Death Eaters would find themselves badly surprised during their next raid.

* * *

Their opportunity came during the last week of August. While Harry was busy training the Phoenix Army, as they now called themselves, the rest of the Order and the Ministry were fighting a losing battle against the Death Eaters, with innocent Muggles usually caught in the crossfire.

"Muggle filth. You should be happy we're cleaning your taint from this world." One Death Eater sneered at the cowering family before him. The fear on their faces was the sweetest part for him. Just as he raised his wand to kill the Muggles, his head suddenly exploded like a dropped ripe melon and he collapsed on the ground to the shock of the two men that were standing with him. They didn't have time to react as they too were gunned down.

The Muggle family watched in relief as a man wearing a British army uniform stepped inside, gun still held aimed before him as he scanned the house.

"Area clear. I have four survivors here." The man spoke once he was sure that there was no more danger.

"Proceed to the house two doors down. We have three more targets confirmed there." A faint voice could be heard coming from his ear.

"Understood. Connors out." The soldier turned to leave.

"Wait. What's going on here?" The man of the house asked, wondering what the hell was going on.

"Your town is under terrorist attack, sir. Remain indoors, a relief team will arrive as soon as the threat has been neutralized." With that, Connors walked out, ready to gun down more Death Eaters. 'This is for you, Andrea.'

Unprepared for the sudden and brutal counterattack, only one Death Eater managed to get out.

"We were ambushed." The man managed to groan out to his comrades before the two rounds in his chest finished their job and finally killed the man.

* * *

Voldemort was in an uproar at this catastrophic failure, and ordered more attacks to compensate, but to his growing horror, all the attacks were stopped with the Death Eaters suffering heavy casualties every time. It didn't take long to learn the reason behind these failures. The Phoenix Army had gone public, and while for the most part, reactions were mixed, a lot of people approved on the active role the Army had taken in the war.

Faced with this unexpected opposition, Voldemort and his servants went to ground, and while this emboldened his enemies, Harry warned them against attacks on Voldemort at this time.

"It is still too soon to launch counterattacks. His bases have too many men and protections. We'd just be throwing away good men and women." Harry replied firmly at the requests for attacks. In the meantime, the Phoenix Army took on protective detail for several important magical locations, like the Ministry, St. Mungo's and Hogwarts.

Following the wake of this, Harry's return to Hogwarts was a rather calm event. True, most people stayed clear of him, since the rumors of his actions in the Department of Mysteries, as well as rumors passed from those with relatives in the Army painted a rather intimidating picture of him.

"Harry, I've been meaning to ask you something. I know you're a lot older then us, so, what I wanted to know was have you ever been with a girl?" Ron asked nervously. While Harry didn't interact much with him, over the summer they had at least started to talk from time to time, most often over a game of chess, and while Ron had yet to win a game, he did not give up on hope.

"Yes. What exactly do you want to know? Techniques, positions, or something else?" Harry grinned as Ron started to blush a deep scarlet.

"Something like that, yeah." Ron stammered, trying to phrase his questions while considering Hermione and Ginny who were also sitting with them.

"How many girls have you been with, then?" Ginny joined in the discussion.

"Counting one-night-stands, and junior officers pushing for promotion, eight-hundred-seventy-six different girls." At this, everyone was staring slack-jawed at him.

"I am not worthy." Ron fell on his knees as he bowed in reverence.

"It's hardly impressive. I know men and women who've had thousands of partners." Harry grinned as he managed to shock them again.

"Lantrisi are pretty hedonistic, aren't they?" Hermione commented.

"Some more then others. Eternity weighs heavily, Hermione. We each find our own way of handling it." Harry shrugged. "I'll be happy to give you some tips later Ron."

* * *

The start of the year went on with little excitement for the Hogwarts students as Voldemort laid low, trying to figure out how the hell the Phoenix Army was responding to his attacks so quickly, and also he needed a way to counter the advantage of the Army's weapons.

This all changed during the first Hogsmeade weekend. The weather was horrible, the snowfall was heavy, and it was very close to a blizzard. Just as Harry and his group of friends were about to enter the Three Broomsticks, Harry and Hermione both tensed and warily turned around, scanning the area.

Moments later, out of the blanket of snow obscuring their view, two figures began to emerge. One of them was tall, while the other only reached to the waist of the first.

"Sophia." Harry whispered in shock as the most beautiful woman they had ever seen stopped before them.

"Daroth." The woman smiled lightly at his shocked expression.

"What are you doing here?" He asked once the surprise passed.

"I just wanted to introduce my son to his father." She grinned widely as she pushed the boy standing next to her forward. While his face had the sharp, predatory lines of the Deathhand line, his hair was a lot messier, and his eyes shone a brilliant, emerald green.

Harry did what any man would do in such a situation. His eyes rolled to the back of his head and he promptly fainted.

AN/ Hope you liked it. Things are about to heat up as we slowly move further and further away from cannon. Hopefully, I'll manage to get another chapter out this week. Until then, have fun


	13. Chapter 13

Another chapter out, and I hope you will be pleased about it. Not much action in it, but there is a rather interesting scene near the end. I apologize in advance for any disturbing mental images it might cause. The story will start to greatly deviate from cannon from this point, and while I will use parts from book six in it, the concept of Horcruxes and book seven will not be a part of this story. Oh, and when I was reviewing the last chapter, I noticed an error that had slipped past me. The sniper bullets the Phoenix Army uses are made of a metal called paranok, not kershin.

**Chapter 13**

When Harry came to, he found himself on a sofa in a slightly darkened room. As he straightened up, he saw Sophia sitting together with Hermione, Ron and Ginny, while the boy Sophia claimed was his son was sitting in his mother's lap.

"Welcome back, Daroth." Sophia grinned lightly.

"How long was I out?" Harry asked with a sigh. Sophia would never let him live this incident down.

"About five minutes or so. I was just getting introduced to your friends here. I daresay you didn't leave a good impression on James." She grinned lightly, and it was mirrored on the child's face as well.

"How come you didn't know about him if he's that old?" Ron asked.

"Lantrisi infants mature very fast, Ron. James is not even a year old." Harry replied back, causing the two humans to splutter in shock. James added a rather cheeky grin at their wide-eyed stares.

"So, other than the obvious surprise, how are things back on Hashera?" Harry asked, speaking out loud for the benefit of their human companions.

"Busy. My role with the Order has shifted to an administrative position now that I have James, but other than that, things are pretty much the same." Sophia replied shortly.

"What did your father say when you told him about James?" Harry grinned as she grimaced slightly.

"He was not happy about my decision, but you know him, the moment he saw him, he turned to mush." Sophia grinned lightly.

"Grandpa is the greatest. He gives the best presents." James grinned and enthusiastically pulled out a short dagger from his belt.

"This is an Order wraith dagger." Harry inspected the blade carefully. "I'd say he's spoiling you, but that's what grandparents are supposed to do."

"Harry, it doesn't bother you that he has something like that in the first place?" Ginny asked nervously.

"Blades are a common gift for young Lantrisi. Your mom has been teaching you how to use it?" Harry ruffled his son's hair as he nodded wildly.

"Well, why don't I take you back to the castle? I have a few things that the Chapter Immaterial might find interesting, and I'm sure we'll find something you'd like as well." Said Chapter was the section of the Order of Death that dealt with magic, and they were quickly gaining notoriety amongst the enemies of the Collective.

"I'm sure they'll be delighted to hear that. They're still moaning about your departure, you know." Sophia grinned as they walked towards Hogwarts.

* * *

"Sir, thank Merlin you're here. We have a problem." Harry was stopped by a frantic man almost the moment they walked inside the castle.

"What happened?" Harry recognized the man as a member of the Phoenix Army, and his concern grew rapidly.

"Voldemort made a move an hour ago. A remote Muggle village was hit. We responded in seconds, but this time, they were ready for us. We lost one man, and two others were wounded in just fifteen seconds. I ordered a retreat to prevent further losses. Regrettably, we were unable to save the village. When a second team went to look for survivors, they found only rubble." The man said with a solemn tone as he led them to the hospital wing.

The acrid smell of burnt flesh hit the four Lantrisi the moment they walked inside the room. Two men were lying on beds, heavily bandaged and moaning in pain.

As Harry listened to a more detailed report, he also took notice of the wounds on the corpse of the killed soldier.

"These look like plasma burns." Sophia commented as she too examined the wounds.

"It's the most likely cause. Did the Death Eaters have weapons other than wands?" He turned to the soldiers.

"It all happened so fast, but yes, they did have something that looked like a rifle. They were shooting glowing green balls all over the place." The squad CO replied with a shiver.

"Damn, that certainly complicates things. Hermione, please take James to my room. Gather the Army commanders and the Order, tell them we need an emergency meeting." Harry snapped, and five minutes later, he was in HQ together with Sophia.

* * *

"We heard about the latest attack. Why didn't the Army stop them?" Shacklebolt asked once everyone was gathered.

"Things just got a lot worse for us. Somehow, Voldemort got his hands on plasma weapons. Considering the level of technology of this world, these weapons could only have come from an extraterrestrial source, which means, Voldemort has managed to contact an alien civilization, and they're supplying him with weapons." Harry said grimly.

"What? What can we do about this?" Dumbledore, like everyone else was feeling quite grim.

"I'll be able to produce armor that will protect our soldiers against plasma blasts, but that is just a reactive measurement. We need to cut off their supply line if we want to succeed. Sophia, normally I wouldn't ask, but I'll need a ship here if I want to win this war." Harry turned to his girlfriend.

"I know how important this is to you. Tell you what. I have a Girant class battleship that's scheduled for decommissioning in six months. I'll have it fixed up a bit and send it over." Sophia gave him a soft grin.

"You're the best, love. You'd best head back. I'll feel much better once James is back on Hashera." Harry gave her a pleading look.

"Alright. I'll go back as soon as I pick him up from your school. Expect the ship to arrive in a day or two." She sighed.

"So, who's James?" Sirius asked, shooting his godson a suspicious look.

"My son, of course." Everyone gaped like a fish at that unexpected bit of news. "Yeah, I was completely blindsided as well. Enough about that. Let's get back to the business at hand."

"What can you tell us about these weapons Voldemort has?" Dumbledore asked.

"From a Lantrisi point of view, plasma weapons are practically relics. Basically, they fire a ball of gas that's been heated to hundreds of thousands of degrees. The armor I plan to put into use will protect you, but it's not a perfect defense. Once the ship arrives, I'll be able to determine how they're getting them, and also, how they're recharging them." Harry replied.

"I can tell you that." Everyone turned to Snape as he spoke up.

"I was summoned after the attack, and I saw a large machine they were using to recharge the rifles. It's very heavily guarded though. The Dark Lord is not taking any chances with this one." Snape continued.

"Can you show us the memory?" Harry asked and placed a pensieve on the table. Snape quickly had the memory inside it, and a translucent image of a large room rose up above the pensieve.

"Looks like some sort of a fusion reactor. Interesting. Whoever is giving him this equipment is either dumping old equipment on him, or they're not that advanced themselves." Harry commented.

"What makes you say that?" Moody couldn't make heads or tails from looking at the machine, and wondered what it was Harry was seeing.

"I've studied similar designs in the historical archives. Hell, I could probably build something better with modern Muggle technology." Harry scoffed.

"So, you don't use something like this?" Sirius asked.

"A fusion reactor doesn't produce enough power for my equipment. Sure, Lantrisi technology is very advanced, but it also needs a lot of power. Well, we'll see how advanced Voldemort's friends are once we've seized their ship." Harry grinned.

* * *

Fortunately for Harry, his position with the Phoenix Army was known with to the top circles of the Ministry, and since the Headmaster was the leader of the Order, he could leave Hogwarts at any time.

"These formulas don't make any sense. We'll just be wasting perfectly good metal." Harry repressed the urge to break the man's neck for the fifth time in the last hour alone. The foundry's chief engineer was stubbornly refusing to accept Harry's formulas.

'If he's this annoying about simple plasma plating, what will he say about the modern Lantrisi alloys?' Harry smirked inwardly.

He had pulled a few ties with the Ministry, along with a little use of his own hacking skills, and got an appointment with a metal foundry to produce the metal he needed to armor his army.

"I didn't ask for a comment on my formulas, Mr. Grant. What I want to know is, can your foundry produce the alloy with the instructions I've provided?" Harry sighed.

"We can try. The methods are a bit strange, after all." The man finally conceded, and three hours later, an inch thick square foot of plasma plating emerged from the cooling station.

"This is perfect, Mr. Grant. My firm would be delighted to place the rest of our order with your fine company." Harry grinned widely at the man who was still staring at the metal sheet in shock.

"How? The formulas didn't make any sense at all." He whispered.

"I don't know myself. I just know that the processing method works. When can we expect the rest of my order?" Harry shrugged.

"Oh, right. We'll have the rest complete in one week." Grant managed to snap out of his shock.

"Excellent. Pleasure doing business with you." Harry grinned and after a few more minutes of small talk, returned to Hogwarts.

* * *

"Harry, did you hear? Katie Bell was taken to St. Mungo's. I heard it was because she had some sort of a cursed necklace with her." Neville informed him of the latest gossip once he had settled in the common room for the day.

"She's alright?" Harry asked with concern.

"The Healers said she'll be fine, but it will take time." Neville replied.

* * *

This unexpected event was put on the backseat for Harry with the arrival of the spaceship he requested.

"I'd be happy to give you all a tour, but first, Hermione and I will have to make sure all the intruder traps have been deactivated. A lot of them are not tied to the control AI, and we'll have to go through them one at a time." Harry explained.

"Is it safe?" Sirius asked nervously.

"For us, yes. Don't worry, the procedure is quite simple, there's just a lot of traps to go through. The Girant class may not be the biggest ship we have, but it is one of the bigger types." Harry grinned and used the comm. system in his watch to displace himself and Hermione to the ship.

"It looks incredible." Hermione whispered as she took in the displacer station. The smooth, dark silver mitrahil plating covering the walls, coupled with the perfectly straight lines of the room gave an unmistakable testament to its inhuman origins.

"Alright, we'll do this deck by deck. You start at the top deck and work your way down, and I'll start from the bottom. If you have any trouble, contact me or Ixius." Ixius was the ship's central AI and while he didn't control all the traps, he still knew where they all were.

"If I never see another trap, it will be too soon. And who the hell had the bright idea to write 'Die, Human, Die' on all the gas canisters?" Hermione grumbled as she and Harry stopped at the ship's mess hall for a little pick me up.

"It's a common joke in the navy. It spread around and the canisters are actually manufactured with that engraved on them." Harry laughed.

"Some joke. Ixius, another Nova Blast." Hermione shouted, as a tall glass of clear liquid with fruit slices in it appeared.

"How can you even stand to drink it with fruit in it?" Harry commented as he took a long drag of his own, clear drink.

"Tastes too bitter without it. And I'll have you know…" She paused to poke him in the chest. She finally managed it after her third try. "…there's nothing wrong with being fruity… liking fruity drinks."

"I think you had a little too much. Come on, it's time to go back." Harry sighed. He really shouldn't have let her drink at all, but since she had completed her basic training, she was considered an adult, and if she wanted to try a drink, she had every right to it.

The sight that greeted the adults awaiting their return in Dumbledore's office was not what they were expecting. When they appeared, Hermione was leaning heavily on Harry, and was in the process of singing some sort of song. It was also the first time any of them had heard the Lantrisi language. The words were sharp, vicious, and everyone could feel a certain forcefulness behind every word.

That was when Hermione burped loudly and giggled, and everyone could feel a strong scent of something emanating from the girl. Fortunately for the humans, the toxins that were used in the drink broke down rather quickly when exposed to air.

"Is she… drunk?" McGonagall exclaimed in shock as Hermione returned to her song.

"She got a bit carried away, I'm afraid. She's still too young to metabolize the amount she had quickly. She'll be alright in a couple of hours." Harry's voice had a tone of amusement in his voice.

"Yep, be right as snow I will." She exclaimed loudly and staggered away from Harry and almost bumped into McGonagall.

"Proffssr, I want to tell ya… yer da best." Hermione almost shouted, and before anyone could react, grabbed McGonagall and locked lips with her.

* * *

"I can't believe I did that." Hermione groaned as she sat holding her head in Harry's room. "And I can't believe you didn't stop me."

"How could I? I was too busy rolling on the floor with laughter. I mean, the look on McGonagall's face was priceless. I think you even gave her some tongue." Harry still had a million watt grin on his face.

"I'll never be able to look her in the face again. Why did you let me drink in the first place?" She grumbled.

"You're an adult now, and you're responsible for your own actions, as well as your own mistakes. Now, while I really enjoyed the unexpected entertainment you provided, it's time to get back to business." Harry's grin vanished in the blink of an eye.

"I'll gather up some members of the Army and the Order and we'll hunt down Voldemort's supplier. For you, I have another task. I picked up several sets of welding equipment from the ship. I want you to take them and show the armor makers for the army how to use it to process the plasma plating." Harry pulled out several sets of goggles and what looked like large guns with long barrels.

"Got it. I'll get on it as soon as the room stops spinning and my head stops pounding." She groaned.

"The hangover will pass in a couple of hours. Catch you later." Harry grinned again and walked out of the room. He was most eager for this mission. After all, it had been a while since he had been on the hunt.


	14. Chapter 14

This was a very difficult chapter to write, and with it starts a rapid deviation from cannon. Some elements from HBP and DH may enter the story, but there won't be a lot of them. The battles with Voldemort will escalate soon, and I will also bring on a whole slew of new enemies for Harry.

**Chapter 14**

"This is an incredible vessel, Harry." Dumbledore commented as a select group of members of the Order and the Army were walking through the ship towards the bridge. The ship's name roughly translated into Valiant Spirit, which was met with approval by the rest of Harry's companions.

"Yesterday, I deployed subspace disruptors to cover the whole solar system. They're not powerful enough to disrupt travel, but any message sent that's not Lantrisi in origin will be distorted beyond legibility." Harry grinned.

"So, when we catch whoever is helping Voldemort, they won't be calling for help." Sirius grinned widely.

"That's right. Of course, they'll eventually send more ships to see what happened, but that won't happen immediately." Harry replied.

"I have a question. Won't they detect this ship when they get in the area?" One of the Army officers asked.

"That's a good question. Right now, the ship's weapons, shields and engines are offline. Since we're positioned in a Langrangian point, we don't need the engines to remain in this position. The only active system is the sensors, and even they don't operate at full capacity. As far as anyone's concerned, we're nothing more than a space rock.

On top of this, Lantrisi ships have a light absorbing exterior and sensor scramblers. They won't see us until we're right on top of them." Harry grinned.

"How long do you think we'll need to wait?" Sirius asked.

"I have no idea. Could be anything from a few days to a few months, based on whatever unknown arrangement Voldemort has with them." Harry shrugged.

* * *

Meanwhile, the new armor Harry had supplied to the Phoenix Army finally allowed them to get back into the fight, but this time, the battles were different.

Both sides now used better tactics, and while the armor helped the Army fight the Death Eaters again, it wasn't a perfect defense, since too many shots would heat it, causing burns underneath the affected area, and also, head protection was limited. This time, casualties on both sides were minimal, and while the Army was struggling to counter the continuous attacks, Voldemort decided to replenish his depleted forces by going on a massive recruitment drive.

Fortunately for Harry, after a week of waiting, the ship's sensors detected a ship entering the Solar system on a course for Earth.

* * *

"Damn, that thing is massive." Sirius exclaimed as they saw an image of the ship as it headed towards them.

"Relax, Sirius. It's just a freighter. Ninety percent of the ship is cargo containers. Let's see, class two ship plating, class three shielding, and six class five plasma cannons. Ixius, calculate potential combat classes based on available data and return threat assessment." Harry read the sensor report before giving the AI a command.

"Estimated combat class is ranked between class five and class seven. Threat level, thirty-seven percent at twenty-on-one odds." Ixius replied.

"What does that mean?" Moody asked.

"It means that they will need dozens of ships to counter even one Lantrisi vessel. Of course, that is just an estimate. First, let's go and greet our guests. Ixius, bring the ship to full tactical readiness and engage an intercept course." Harry ordered.

The crew of the freighter only had time to stare as a black shape suddenly blocked their sight of the Moon before white light washed over them and they found themselves in a completely different area.

* * *

"What's that smell?" More than one man commented as a group was displaced aboard the freighter.

"We're on an alien ship, gentlemen. Don't worry, we won't be here long." Harry sat at the pilot's seat, and while he could not understand the controls, a little trial and error let him figure out the basics and he soon had the freighter parked in high orbit.

"Alright, I've copied their computer database. This should help us learn their language, as well as figure out what their mission really is." Harry gently tapped the handheld device in his hand.

"What about their cargo?" Moody asked.

"Mostly various ores. A few containers hold various equipment components, and I did detect several crates of plasma rifles as well as a complete fusion reactor with fuel for it." Harry replied once they were back on the Valiant Spirit.

"So, they were here to give Voldemort more weapons?" Sirius shivered.

"Good thing we stopped them then. Now, let's see what secrets we can discover from this." Harry began to study the computer data, and only moments later, grinned widely.

"This is a lucky break. Their translator database contains several Earth languages. That should speed things up a great deal." It took a couple of hours until Harry finally had the whole database analyzed and quickly prepared a briefing for his group.

"Well, Voldemort's new friends are called the Darkiin Alliance. They are a union of several races, and they're pretty much the power in this region of space. Earth is a vital point in their expansion plans as it is an ideal spot for a supply base, and also, the discovery of magic has caught the eye of their leaders. From what I managed to learn, Voldemort has been in contact with them for decades." Everyone shuddered at this revelation.

"So, what next?" Dumbledore asked.

"First, we see if our two guests in the brig have any more useful information. Then, we turn this war around." Harry grinned widely.

"How?" Shacklebolt asked.

"Simple. This ship is designed for point defense of larger vessels, which means that most of its weapons are useful agains smaller targets like fighters, but it does have a cache of torpedoes and is capable of orbital bombardment." Harry's grin was infectious this time.

"You're going to bomb the Death Eater bases?" Sirius was barely restraining his laughter.

"Death from above. Sounds unfair, but to quote my old instructor, 'It's only cheating if you lose'." Harry laughed.

* * *

"So, what is this place?" Hermione asked as she, together with Harry, Moody and Shacklebolt entered a rather isolated part of the ship. Only a single corridor led to this area, and Hermione remembered removing over two dozen traps in it, but when she tried the door, it refused to open.

"This ship was used by the Order of Death. This part of the ship is where agents are briefed, amongst other things. With access to the equipment in this room, you could intercept and decode all Order communications. This is also where interrogations are performed." Harry replied as he led them into a small room. One of the walls was transparent, and through it they could see a large room with a large metal slab in the middle of it. One of the walls was made of what looked like a series of lockers. A single wheeled multi-tiered metal table was standing near the metal slab.

* * *

In a flash of light, two grayish-green aliens appeared. They resembled lizards, only these were humanoid. Their expressions showed surprise, fear and anger at their situation.

Ignoring their threats and demands, Harry moved to the lockers, and removed a large baton, followed by different metal trays holding a number of different instruments which he placed on the wheeled table.

Then, he picked up the baton and headed towards the two still shouting aliens. With the press of a button, one of the baton's tips burst to life with a violent shower of sparks. With a vicious jab, Harry rammed the baton in the chest of one of the aliens, causing it to shriek in pain and collapse on the ground. The other tried to aid his comrade, but the area they appeared in was covered by a stasis field that prevented any non-Lantrisi to move in it.

"Who are you?" The frozen alien spoke as Harry strapped his comrade to the metal slab. A part in the middle sank lower to accommodate the tail.

"We are enemies of Voldemort, and since you've been helping him, you are our enemies as well. Now, I will ask you both a series of questions, and you will answer them truthfully and in great detail. Refuse and you will regret it with every fiber of your being." Harry grinned evilly as he began to inspect the instruments by his side.

"We are loyal soldiers of the Darkiin alliance. We will never aid our enemies." The freighter commander snapped.

"I have heard such words many times. So far, I've performed ninety-six successful interrogations, and I don't intend to break my streak just yet. Now, shall we begin?" With that, Harry picked up the first instrument and moved towards his nervous victim.

Lantrisi torture methods and instruments had been refined for thousands of years and on dozens of different species, designed to inflict lasting and excruciating pain with the minimal amount of damage. Combined with the medical equipment they had at their disposal, a skilled interrogator could keep his victim in perpetual agony for weeks, if not months.

The two Darkiin only managed to last a few hours under Harry's ministrations.

"That was the most brutal thing I have seen in my life." Moody shivered at the memory. Despite the warnings from Harry, the two Aurors had insisted on observing the torture, and it seemed they were now deeply regretting the decision.

* * *

"I'm afraid my interrogation gave me more bad news. The Darkiin are currently gearing up for war against one of their neighbors. They're expected to begin the attack within the year." Harry sighed.

"How is that bad news?" Dumbledore asked curiously.

"Normally, it wouldn't be, unfortunately for us, Earth is in the middle of the expected frontline. This sector of space is expected to endure the heaviest combat in the coming war." Harry's words made all the gathered people pale in shock.

"What can we do? I doubt this one ship can protect us against that." Moody asked.

"No, it cannot. There are good news, however. One of the cargo holds on the freighter contains three tons of refined hysperil. In the Lantrisi universe, it's an extremely rare metal. It is used in small amounts to produce the crucial components in our singularity reactors. It's so rare there that over ninety percent of it is produced by molecular reconstruction of other, more plentiful minerals. This, however is a very energy intensive and inefficient process.

At any point in time, there are about fifty brand new ships sitting in dry-dock waiting for the reactor parts. Giving the hysperil to the Collective will get us everything we need to defend this system. I'll contact Hashera later and take care of the trade." Harry grinned.

"I think we should get back to Hogwarts. We've been away for far too long as it is." Dumbledore stood up, but a gesture from Harry brought him back down.

"Just a moment. I reviewed the monitoring map before I got here, and I noticed something interesting. There are six Death Eaters in Hogwarts, when there should only be one. Any reason why they're still breathing?" Harry asked.

"They are only students who have been pressed into servitude. They haven't done anything wrong yet." Dumbledore said immediately.

"Very well, I will leave it to you for now. However, if even one of them steps out of line, I want all of them shot." This was more aimed at the Army officer sitting across him.

"There's just one more thing I want to say. With the recent developments, I'm afraid I will not be returning to Hogwarts. There's just too much to for me to be tied down at the school." Several people looked like they wanted to protest, but they had learned quickly that once Harry had made up his mind, he wasn't changing it.

* * *

Once he sent everyone back to Earth, Harry began preparing to contact the Lantrisi universe.

The method was a combination of magic and technology, using spells to open the gateway and devices to keep it stable.

Once the gateway was formed, Harry waited, knowing that he would be contacted soon. True enough, seconds later, the viewscreen before him was occupied by the visage of Lord Deathhand.

"Daroth, it is good to see you, my boy, but I daresay this isn't a social call?" The man gave him a warm grin before he spoke.

"I'm afraid not, my Lord. I learned that Voldemort has contacts with a nearby interstellar power, who have recently begun to supply him with weapons and equipment. While investigating this matter further, I also discovered that this region of space will soon be the grounds for a massive conflict between the dominant forces of this region." Harry replied.

"That is grave news, indeed. You do know of course, that the Collective can hardly spare the resources to aid you." Lord Deathhand gave a light sigh.

"I would never presume to burden the Collective, my Lord. However, I have appropriated something that should keep the Collective's power stable. I have in my possession three tons of refined hysperil." Harry grinned as his Lord's eyes threatened to fall out of his head.

"You're kidding. Three whole tons?" Lord Deathhand spluttered.

"There's more. From what I read in the database of the people I got it from, it is listed as a semi-rare mineral in these parts. Haradont, shirakon and deremite are also found on many worlds and asteroids in the quadrant." Harry grinned as he saw the gleam in his lord's eye.

"Those are hardly as rare as hysperil, but a proper stockpile of those minerals will double, if not triple our ship production rates. You have my attention, Daroth. Now, tell me what you need." Lord Deathhand laughed.

"What I need most is a Fortress defense package. A few combat teams would be handy, as would some ships." Harry replied.

"Let me see…" Lord Deathhand spent a few moments working on a console to his side, occasionally muttering under his breath.

"The Fortress package is easy, since we have some in storage. Once it's prepped, we'll ship it over and install it. As for the troops and ships, I'm sending you a third of the Chapter Immaterial, a full legion of soldiers and four battle groups." This time, Harry's eyes threatened to vacate his skull.

"That's over eighty ships counting the troop transports. Can the Collective spare such numbers?" Harry protested.

"With the hysperil you've provided, we'll be able to replace them in a month, and it's not like I'm pulling them from the borders, am I? The reason I'm sending you that kind of force is to secure more resources for the future of the Collective. With the increased production, we might finally break the stalemate we have with the Alliance." Lord Deathhand smirked.

"When can I expect the ships to arrive, my Lord?" Harry asked.

"They will begin arriving tomorrow. Prepare a permanent gateway for their use. I'm sure you'll be pleased to see your old schoolmate. She has recently been promoted as well. She will have command over the fleet, however, I'm giving command over the whole operation to you." With that, the connection was closed, and Harry directed the Darkiin freighter into the gateway.

Soon, the Darkiin would curse the day they ever heard of Lord Voldemort.


	15. Chapter 15

Another chapter done, and with it the story goes almost completely AU. Some characters from book 6&7 will appear, their plots will have no bearing on my story. This chapter is more of a filler, but the action will start soon. Until next time, enjoy.

**Chapter 15**

Harry watched with a grin as a constant stream of ships emerged from the gateway and began to spread around in the area. A flash of light to his side revealed his old subordinate Arella, now wearing admiral markings.

"It's good to see you again, Daroth." She grinned as she hugged him.

"You too, Arella. Congratulations on your promotion."

"I owe it all to your great example over the years. We'll catch up later, now we got business to do." She gave one last grin before her face turned serious. "Daroth, by unanimous decision of the Council of Lords, you are hereby given the rank of Sector Lord, with all the duties and privileges it entails. May your rule be long and prosperous."

"You're joking." Her face barely contained her mirth as she shook her head.

"Great. Well, if the Council has made this decision, all I can do is honor it. Are all ships through?" Harry signed.

"Yes. We're moving to create a supply station in orbit over Luna, and make a new, bigger portal." She replied.

"What for? I made sure the gate was big enough to let through even the biggest ships we have." Harry frowned.

"You forgot we're here to mine. We're also bringing in auto-refineries to this sector." She grinned.

* * *

"How many?" Harry's eyes widened slightly. Auto refineries were gigantic constructs that were the size of a large asteroid. They were so big in fact, that their method of propulsion was twelve frigates that towed it through space. Through the use of vast amounts of nanites, they had the ability to completely process any area they were deployed in and turn it into useful materials and energy. Four of them working together could completely erase a whole planet in a few decades.

"Eight. The plan is to deploy one on Luna to transform it into a shipyard. This way, we can amass a large amount of ships without our enemies noticing it." Arella grinned widely.

"Lord Deathhand doesn't do anything by half, huh? Let's get started then." Harry's face turned serious. "Ixius, status report."

"The Chapter Immaterial detachment has already begun reworking the portal, and the constructor ships have begun work on the supply station. Initial surveys of Luna are already in place to determine the best construction locations as well as any useful mineral deposits." The AI reported quickly.

Once the supply station was in place, the Lantrisi ships went on to deploy the Fortress defense system. It consisted of layers of defenses, each heavier than the last.

* * *

The first two layers were cloaked, self-replicating mine fields, with the second having a larger yield. They were cleverly designed to stop replication after large enough gaps had been made so when the enemy passed through to combat the inner layers, the fields would close and cut off retreat and reinforcements.

The inner layers consisted of turret emplacements, the first two were Decimator cannon turrets, and the energy weapons system lived up to its name. The Bunker class defense system stopped here.

The Stronghold system had an extra layer beyond that one that consisted of torpedo launching turrets.

The Fortress system had one last line of defense close to the most important points in the system consisting of large turrets equipped with Penetrator cannons. They had two types of ammunition. The first was a solid slug consisting of one ton of paranok metal launched at 0.9 times the speed of light. The speed, mass and explosive force of the metal ensured the destruction of anything it hit. Even Lantrisi ships would have trouble enduring such a powerful strike.

The second type was the same, only this time the slug was made of kershin metal. It was incredibly tough, deforming very little even when it endured massive impact forces, and it was shaped for maximum penetrating power, which incidentally gave this weapons system its name.

The paranok shot was used to destroy capital ships quickly, while the kershin shot, if aimed properly could take out several smaller ships in a single shot.

The only flaw was the large reloading time as well as the need for precise aiming, but that flaw was offset by the final defensive element in the Stronghold and Fortress systems.

At several points in the solar system, special stations were emplaced that served as the dock and servicing station for automated space fighters. They were controlled by an AI on board the station that used the sensors that were a part of the system to direct and control them.

The systems also had a large amount of support systems like the sensors as well as repair and power generation systems.

It would take the Lantrisi engineers months to deploy it all, but the ships were more than enough to cover the blind spots in the system while it was being built.

* * *

"You said you had urgent news?" Harry faced Hermione once she was brought on board at her own request. Harry hadn't been down to Earth even once, relying on Hermione to act as his liaison between the Lantrisi in orbit and the magical forces on the ground.

"Yes. I'll save the worst for last, if you don't mind. The smallest problem right now is the Death Eater students at Hogwarts. They're planning something, and professor Slughorn almost got poisoned somehow. There's nothing linking them to it, but I believe at least one of them was involved." She sighed.

"The solution is simple. Bring them in and interrogate them until you find out what they're planning. The Ministry has given the Phoenix Army authority to deal with marked Death Eaters as we see fit. If you can't make them talk, we have several skilled Order members in the fleet." Harry shrugged. He wasn't going to concern himself with them. They chose to accept the mark, and now they had to deal with the consequences.

"Right. Well, the second thing is, the Muggles have seen our operation here, and they're going crazy trying to figure out what to do. The crew of the Mir is especially nervous about our ships flying about the system, especially since you have yet to respond to any of their attempts of communication." Hermione continued her report.

"Ixius, have there been any radio transmissions directed at the fleet since our arrival here?" Harry asked, already anticipating the answer.

"Yes, Lord Daroth. The planet is already generating a staggering amount of traffic using this method, and since the transmission pattern was erratic, I ignored them. Also, reconfiguring our communications arrays to receive such primitive transmissions would have taken several hours and would require a complete shutdown of the system." The AI replied calmly.

That was one of the few flaws of Lantrisi AI. While incredibly effective and reliable, they often had the habit of taking initiative and doing things they felt were best. This was tolerated since the core command of all AI were that they could not under any circumstance perform an action that would lead to the harm of Lantrisi or the Collective. Still, it wasn't unknown for ship captains to replace particularly willful AI.

"Next time, inform me, and I'll decide if it should be ignored or not. Hermione, I'm afraid you'll have to take care of this. Go through the Ministry, contact the Muggle government in the UK and have them inform the rest of the world leaders." Harry sighed.

"What should I tell them?" She asked.

"Tell them we're here on a mining operation in this sector, and that this system was merely a convenient staging point, and that we won't be bothering with Earth as it doesn't have any of the special minerals we're after. Consider it as a test of your diplomatic skills. You are my second, after all." Harry grinned at her.

"I'll make some calls and get in touch with the right people. I have one last bit of news for you, and you're not going to like it. Voldemort is not on Earth." Hermione informed him with trepidation, and she was not disappointed in his reaction. His punch left a deep dent in the mitrahil plating to his right.

* * *

"How the hell did he escape?" Harry growled.

"He's been gone for months. Apparently, he had been communicating with a select few followers using a subspace receiver they have in one of their bases, and they relayed his orders to the rest. Snape managed to find out about this only yesterday." Hermione replied.

"He's a lot cleverer than I expected. It is very likely that he now has marked servants on the Darkiin worlds as well, which means killing him has just become even harder, if not impossible." Harry sighed.

"What are you going to do?" Arella joined the discussion.

"We'll just have to capture him instead. I think it's time Voldemort learnt that there are fates far worse then death and the Order of Death can do them all." Harry grinned savagely.

"I'll get started on the tasks you set me, then." Hermione turned towards the door.

"One last thing. Inform the Order and the Army that I'll be stopping by in a couple of weeks. Now that the system is secure, we need to deal with the remaining Death Eaters before we start to assault Darkiin holdings for the resources we need for our operations here." Harry grinned.

* * *

"What's this all about, Granger? Some of us have better things to do than stare at mudbloods all day." Draco Malfoy sneered at Hermione as he and several other students were brought in before her.

In response, Hermione picked up the shock baton she picked up from Harry's ship and rammed it in his gut. The sudden electric shock left him on ground, his whole body twitching.

"I suggest you choose your words carefully, Draco. All I have to do is give the word and have you lined before a firing squad like the good little Death Eater you are." Hermione grinned as the group began to pale.

"How did…" Nott whispered.

"How do we know you have the mark? We have our ways. Now, we know you have some sort of task to perform here at Hogwarts. You will tell me everything you know." She grinned. While she didn't think she would ever become an interrogator, she had to admit that there was a certain thrill in it.

"Why should we?" Draco managed to stagger back to his feet, but his limbs still twitched occasionally.

"You have two choices before you. Option one, you tell me everything, and we move you and your families somewhere safe and have your marks removed. Option two, I hand you over to some rather unpleasant people that will make you beg for the Cruciatus while you're spilling all your secrets to them, followed by an execution. What will it be?" Hermione's wide smirk told them she was deathly serious, and the group quickly caved in to her demands and told her everything.

* * *

"Right this way, miss." Hermione followed her uniformed guide through the building where she was brought for her meeting with the Prime Minister. When Amelia Bones told the man about the meeting request from Hermione and whom she was there to represent, the man asked for three days before the meeting took place.

When Hermione walked in the meeting room, she understood why the man asked for the extra time as she stood face to face with representatives from every major military power in the world.

"Greetings. My name is Hermione Granger, second to Lord Storm-eye, Lord of this sector and member of the great Lantrisi Collective." She introduced herself with a bow.

"Please, take a seat, Miss Granger. I have to say, I didn't expect your name to sound so Earth-like, or for you to look as you do." The British Prime Minister commented.

"Certain species like humans for example can be integrated into the Collective. I was human before my Lord brought me into the fold." A round of nervous murmurs circled the room at this revelation.

"And what are your intentions here? You have a significant presence in space around our planet." The Chinese representative asked.

"We are here to mine certain rare ores that are plentiful in this region of space. This solar system was merely the most convenient location to establish a foothold in this sector. To better benefit from the influx of these resources, we are also constructing a shipyard on Luna. The large military presence is due to the fact that the local interstellar powers hold most of the locations we plan to exploit." She replied calmly.

"I find that a bit hard to believe." The Russian representative joined in the talks.

"You can believe anything you want. There's nothing you can do to stop us anyway. Our technology is far superior to anything you have, and even without it, you don't want to mess with us." She picked up a steel cup that was near her and crushed it in her hand. There were a lot of wide eyes and pale faces in the room after that spectacle.

"Can we perhaps engage in trade? I am sure we can all benefit from such relations." The Prime Minister jumped in before this turned into a competition to see who had the bigger stick.

* * *

"There is something that you can provide to us. My Lord wishes to expand his clan to a number more befitting his stature. You can help by providing volunteers for this purpose. By joining the Collective, any disease and all but the worst of mental defects can be cured. Considering the number of people on this world that are dying from cancer alone, you will have no shortage of volunteers.

In exchange, we will provide you with the technology to build fusion reactors as well as high capacity batteries. With the planet's dwindling oil supplies, converting to electricity for fuel will help greatly." She grinned.

"That would completely collapse our economy." One man protested.

"Our projections estimate an overall increase in living standard by about four hundred percent from the current condition of the world in a period of fifteen years." Hermione shrugged. The fact that it would cost some of the richest people on the planet a good chunk of their fortune was of no concern for them. For the Lantrisi, excessive luxury was not a good thing.

"Did your projections say anything about the bankruptcies, inflation, and riots that such technology would create before things stabilize?" The same man pressed on.

"You are under no obligation to accept our offer. We are merely offering you technology that will be of benefit to you." Hermione shrugged.

"Can you provide us with medicines as well? That would be of great use to our people." One of the female representatives joined the talks this time.

"We don't have any that humans can use, but if we can examine a person suffering from a certain condition, we can produce a cure for the ailment." Hermione replied.

It took several long hours before they managed to hammer out an agreement that every nation present could agree on, and by the end of it, Hermione just picked up her copy, transported right to the Valiant Spirit and drank herself into unconsciousness in the mess hall.

* * *

"I take it the meeting went well?" Harry had an amused grin as he watched his second rise from her bed with a groan.

"I am never dealing with politicians again. How is it possible for them to bicker about even the most logical things?" Hermione sighed.

"The wonders of democracy, my dear. The system is good in theory, but in practice, greed and corruption have twisted a good idea into a parody of what it's supposed to be." Harry shrugged. "On a different topic, I have this for you."

Hermione stared curiously at the drinking glass of solid diamond set into a pedestal. There were no markings or anything to signify its purpose.

"What is this?" She finally gave up trying to figure it out.

"That is your trophy. You are the first Lantrisi ever to drink enough Nova Blast to need detox." Harry laughed as Hermione blushed and tossed the trophy at him, only for Harry's body to disperse into smoke causing it to pass right through. When he reformed, his laughter only increased in volume.

"I'm never going to live this down, am I?" She sighed.

"Probably not. Don't worry, the novelty will die down in a few centuries, but I wouldn't recommend a visit to Hashera in the near future." Harry's laughter echoed down the corridor as he walked away.

Vowing to get back at him, she stomped away to the displacer room to return to Hogwarts. She had too much work to deal with Harry at the moment.


	16. Chapter 16

Well, it's been a while with this fic, but I finally managed to get a new chapter done. Starting with this chapter, the story diverts completely from the books, and the plot will be completely original. Expect big space battles and other exciting conflicts in the chapters to come. The end is still a long way to come, so you can be certain a lot is yet to happen to the coolest vampire in the HP fandom :)

**Chapter 16**

Even after two weeks, Earth was buzzing like a hive about the Lantrisi fleet in orbit, and the contact their leaders had made. The promised technology and the requests made by the visitors only fueled the debates in the non-magical world, while the magical world remained for the most part, ignorant of the excitement.

"I hope you have a good reason for calling me, Prime Minister. I am a very busy individual." Hermione was irritated that her duties as Harry's second greatly cut into her study time.

"I would not bother you for trivial matters, I assure you. The public has been clamoring for days, demanding a public appearance by your people. Would you be willing to appear in a press conference?" The man asked.

"I suppose it would be acceptable. When and where?" She sighed.

"Tomorrow at noon. You can come here and I'll arrange for transport for you." The man's face relaxed a bit when she accepted.

"Until tomorrow, then." With that, she walked to the floo and threw a small packet of powder into it, turning the fire green.

* * *

The next day, practically the whole world was watching with baited breath the announced press conference where they would finally see what their visitors were like.

The reporters started to mutter when the Prime Minister of the UK walked in with a young girl and headed for the rest of the dignitaries.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please allow me to introduce the guest you have all been waiting to see. This is Hermione Granger, the representative of the Lantrisi Collective, whose ships are currently present in our solar system." A lot of people were shocked and confused, especially all of Hermione's friends and relatives.

"I am sure you have many questions, and I will strive to answer all of them. I will start with the reason for the Collective's presence in this sector. This region of space is rich in certain types of rare ores that we use in various devices, and we are establishing a mining operation here. We are also building a shipyard on Luna to best utilize the influx of resources from the mining." Hermione began.

"Our telescopes noticed dozens of ships around the system. What exactly do you need that much military presence for?" The reporter she pointed out stood up and asked his question.

"The interstellar civilizations in this region were considered unlikely to permit our presence here, so we felt it prudent to arrive with sufficient military force. Already, our construction ships are busy deploying defensive structures all over this solar system while our battleships are busy patrolling. We expect to begin mining operations within the month." Hermione replied.

"What exactly is your intention with Earth?" Another reporter asked.

"Earth has no resources we cannot obtain just as easily elsewhere, and we are willing to compensate the people of Earth for our use of your solar system as a staging area." Hermione replied.

"What about your request for people to join your people? How does that work exactly?" The questions continued.

"Anyone below thirty can undergo the process to become one of our people. We are only asking for volunteers, of course. As for how the change…" Hermione's words were drowned by a deafening bang. The curtain behind Hermione was suddenly splattered with blood and Hermione's blue dress was stained with blood as she collapsed.

* * *

The room erupted in pandemonium as the people began screaming and shouting.

"This is a new dress damn it." Hermione pulled herself to her feet, shocking the room into silence. It was obvious after all that the shot went right through her heart.

"Are you alright?" The Prime Minister asked with concern as she stood up.

"I'll be fine. My second heart is still working fine." Hermione said curtly as a flash of light announced the arrival of two soldiers armed with Decimator rifles and wearing combat armor.

"Get this damn blood cleaned before somebody touches it. The sniper is long gone by now." Hermione snapped, and one of the guards pulled a pencil sized device that emitted a faint blue light that completely erased all blood traces.

"Look at this. My dress has a huge hole in it." Hermione grumbled, and everyone's attention was drawn to the hole that looked like it was made by a large caliber sniper round. Beneath it, her skin had already closed, leaving no trace of the wound.

"Milady, Lord Storm-eye insists you return to the flagship immediately." One of the soldiers spoke.

"He's just a big worrywart, but I guess I better. Next time somebody tries to assassinate me or anyone else from the Collective for that matter, I would like to point out that we have over thirty ships capable of orbital bombardment." Hermione hissed the last part and vanished in a flash of light.

* * *

Harry was not about to let this assault just slide, but on the other hand, did not want to create unnecessary hostility on Earth. So, he used his ship to target the largest stockpiles of nuclear missiles and used the displacer on his flagship to gather a sizable chunk somewhere midway between Earth and the Moon where he detonated them.

The people of Earth stared in shocked awe at the new sun that suddenly burst into the sky.

Mere minutes later, every communication satellite received the same broadcast, sent all over the world.

"People of Earth, I am Lord Storm-eye. The explosion you witnessed moments ago was a big part of your world's nuclear arsenal. The next time you attack one of my own, you will experience first-hand the full fury of the Lantrisi Collective. Despite this unprovoked attack, our cooperation with your world will continue. My people are not your enemy, and I hope that in time, you will realize this fact and come to fully enjoy the many benefits we can bring you." The message was brief, but effective.

* * *

As the governments of Earth tried to figure out just who the hell attempted the assassination, light years from Earth the leaders of the Darkiin Alliance were busy with matters of state.

"Your continued failures paint a bad picture of your competence, Lord Voldemort." A gorilla-like humanoid with four arms sneered at the serpentine man.

"Bad information is often the downfall of even the greatest leaders, Lord Astkar. My unfortunate banishment for thirteen years was an inconvenient delay, but one I managed to work around and resume my operations in full. I was poised to strike a killing blow when that damn boy emerged out of nowhere." Voldemort growled.

"There is more happening on Earth than meets the eye, my friends. I have analyzed the tactics and methods used by this Phoenix Army that opposed you, and the evidence points to a simple fact. The man that organized them is well trained and very experienced in all forms of warfare." An alien that looked like a humanoid cobra hissed.

"My lords, a thousand pardons, but the scout ship from the Karhis system has returned." One of the attendants, belonging to the same race as the last lord rushed in and handed him a device.

"Let us see what our observers learned of Earth." The snake man hissed contently, only to freeze in shock at the sight of a mass of unknown ships that were apparently busy deploying stationary fortifications.

"I don't recognize this ship design. This is not a race we've encountered before."

"It has to be Potter. I have already informed you about our duel. It seems my spell sent him a bit farther from Earth." Voldemort mused.

"The question remains, how powerful are these ships? Can we beat them, and if so, how much is it going to cost us?" A massive insectoid figure over 10 feet tall chattered from its position. The translator on its chest translated the sounds into a female voice.

"We require more information. We need to discover who they are, what do they want, and how strong they are. We cannot afford a major conflict considering our upcoming campaign against the Rakool Empire." The snake man pointed out.

"Lord Saarsh is correct. I will contact my agents on Earth before Potter decides to dispose of them. Perhaps they will be able to provide us with some information." Voldemort said and the other lords continued with other topics.

* * *

"What do you think?" On the other side of the Sol system sat another observation ship. Two birdlike aliens sat behind the controls, their short, sharp beaks clicking in their language.

"These ships are difficult to detect, so getting a good sensor reading from this distance is difficult."

"Do you think they are allies of the Darkiin?"

"Since they are fortifying the system from all sides, I doubt it. We should contact the homeworld and get more instructions." The captain of the ship concluded.

An hour later, a reply came, telling them to contact the new force in Sol and learn as much as they could.

"Alright. Disengage the cloak and approach the system. Wait until we're contacted." The captain instructed his pilot.

The nearest Lantrisi ship approached them only minutes later, and at that range, the captain's feathers ruffled in fear. The ship was just an ordinary frigate judging from its size and weapons systems, yet it was still more powerful than their strongest capitol ships.

"Greetings from the Rakool Empire, friends. We are here with peaceful intentions, merely curious about your sudden presence in what was considered a primitive system." The captain began once communication was established.

"Please follow us. Lord Storm-eye has instructed us that he wishes to speak with potential allies in person." The ship captain replied.

"Remain close to our ship. It is for your own safety, as we have recently deployed a minefield in this region."

A bit nervous, the Rakool captain did as he was told and moved his scout ship as close as he could to the frigate.

* * *

The man's eyes widened further and further the deeper they went into the system and he continued to read the reports from his sensors. One thing was certain. Whoever these people were, he would give his strongest recommendation to his superiors to avoid antagonizing them at all cost.

"You are free to dock at Lord Storm-eye's flagship. I am transmitting you the coordinates now." The frigate captain informed him and veered away, going back to the region where they first met.

The Rakool captain followed the coordinates, and was simply shocked at the size of the ship he was heading to.

Harry had transferred from the Valiant Spirit onto the Eve of Destruction, a Koraash class carrier that was the largest and most powerful ship in the Collective.

* * *

When the Rakool ship entered the hangar, they found a welcome guard already present, and when the captain and his pilot stepped down the access ramp of the ship, they were given a salute from the two rows of soldiers arranged on both sides. At the opposite end of the line of men, Harry stood, watching his new guests with interest.

The captured Darkiin ship had plenty of information about the Rakool, and he was glad for the chance to establish contact with them. An alliance with them would only help his goals, as they shared a common enemy, and other than the mineral wealth, the Collective had no interest in the Darkiin territory and other assets.

"Welcome to the Eve of Destruction. I am Lord Storm-eye. On behalf of the Lantrisi Collective, I welcome you." Harry greeted them.

The Rakool introduced themselves, but their names, even with the translator sounded like a collection of clicks, squawks and chirps.

"Please, follow me. I daresay we have much to discuss." Harry grinned.

* * *

In the month that followed, Harry established an alliance with the Rakool, and was already gearing up for the first major offensive against the Darkiin.

On Earth, the Phoenix Army and the Ministry managed to round up the last remaining Death Eaters, and the magical world was once again at peace.

On the Muggle side, the Lantrisi had kept their word and had delivered plans and prototypes of a number of technologies like fusion reactors, high capacity batteries, electrical engines that were even better than internal combustion engines, as well as a massive amount of medicines and other chemicals that could be used in a wide range of fields from medicine to agriculture.

A lot of large corporations protested about the fact that the designs were delivered on a global scale, preventing any single group a monopoly over the new technology, but they had no choice but to accept this fact.

* * *

Hermione had finally given up on completing her Hogwarts education, as the time required was simply impossible when the rest of her duties were factored in. With the end of the conflict in the magical world, her primary duties shifted to the oversight of the distribution of the new technology to the various countries of Earth, as well as the upcoming integration of the first volunteers for Harry's clan.

"Welcome, everyone. I am certain that all of you have thought long and hard before coming here, so I will get right to the point. How do you join the Collective?" Hermione stood before the fifty volunteers that were the chosen to form the primary hierarchy of Harry's clan. From them, the interlink would branch out, eventually encompassing many thousands of individuals. At first sight, you'd be hard pressed to find a more miserable bunch. All of them suffered from a terminal disease, be it cancer, leukemia or AIDS, and even with the advanced medicines the Lantrisi provided, their condition was too advanced to cure.

However, their eyes still held strength and a will to live, which was the main reason for them being here.

"To put it in the most basic terms, Lantrisi are vampires." Hermione's words were followed by a lot of muttering from the assembled group.

"I thought vampires were all goth and such nonsense." One man spoke up.

"I won't say that such individuals don't exist in the Collective, but as a whole, we are not like that. Most Lantrisi are actually rather upbeat, if not a bit hedonistic. Also, our replication technology provides us with all the blood we need, so a Lantrisi that has actually used his fangs is an exception nowadays." Hermione grinned, accentuating the pair of incredibly long, thin fangs.

"So, how exactly do we become Lantrisi?" A bald woman asked.

"Lantrisi blood contains elements that when introduced in non-Lantrisi blood act as a virus, introducing genetic changes and releasing chemicals that stimulate the growth of new cells as well as increase the decay of old cells. Basically, your whole body is rebuilt over a period of two days. This is a very stressful process, so the body needs to be flexible enough to adapt to the changes.

For larger groups, we have also developed nanites that introduce the changing elements with greater control so that a proper hierarchy can be established quickly." Hermione paused for a moment.

"All Lantrisi are connected to each other, like a psychic computer network. All our combined knowledge is stored in this massive psychic energy field. This also makes us immune to telepaths. To read the mind of a single Lantrisi is to experience the full extent of the Collective." Hermione grinned.

* * *

"What about government?"

"A good question. The Collective is divided into seven clans, each ruled by a Lord. The Council of Lords decide on matters that affect the whole Collective, but on lesser matters, the clans are independent. Each clan serves a specific function in the Collective. The Deathhand, Moon-Howl and Blood-Fist clans are the military clans. They are the most numerous, and their members are spread through all branches of our military forces. The Storm-Hammer clan are the engineers of the Collective, and they operate the many factories, shipyards and other production facilities throughout the Collective.

The Dark-Scar clan are the administrators. They oversee the logistics and bureaucratic duties of the entire Collective. The Red-Eye clan are the researchers of the Collective. They conduct all studies into new technologies. The division is not absolute, of course. You can find members of each clan in practically all duties available.

Now, finally is the Storm-Eye clan, which is newly established, and other than myself, you will be the first members to join it. Our duty in the Collective will be to serve as the magical branch. It will be our duty to develop useful magic for the Collective, as well as utilize it. The Chapter Immaterial of the Order of Death will maintain their role to develop magic for the use in combat, assassination, infiltration and sabotage. Our role will be to provide the less martial uses of magical aid." All volunteers had been briefed on magic, so they took the last announcement in stride.

"One last question. What engines do you use on your ships, and how fast do they go?" One man asked with a grin.

"Our ships utilize a subspace induction drive and they are the fastest known propulsion method currently known. They are capable of moving a ship from the core of the galaxy to the edge in three years. However, I am told that our scientists are currently working on a new propulsion system that will allow us to reach any point in the galaxy in a matter of weeks, if not days." Hermione grinned.

"Now, I suggest we proceed. All your further questions will be answered once you begin your basic training." With that, she bent down and pressed a button on a metal canister sitting next to her.

The smooth walls flipped open, and the canister released a thick red mist that consisted of a large amount of nanites already encoded with the necessary instructions.

Once the people began to collapse, groups of Lantrisi moved in, securing them to the floor with thick belts tied to long metal spikes they nailed right into the concrete floor of the room.

"The foundation of the clan has been laid, Harry." Hermione reported as she observed the people before her begin to trash around as the changes began inside their bodies.

"You've done well, my dear. Words cannot express how proud I am of you. I want you to oversee their training while I organize the upcoming attacks. Think you can handle it?" Harry replied quickly.

"Just go and kick ass. I can handle things down here." Hermione grinned lightly as a chuckle echoed in her mind for a few seconds.


	17. Chapter 17

Another chapter done, despite real life's best attempts to distract me from my writing. This chapter gives further insight into Lantrisi culture, and the start of the action as well. Expect a lot of battles in the coming chapters.

**Chapter 17**

The Sol system was finally fully fortified, and the Lantrisi finally began gearing up for conquest.

"Report, admiral." Harry opened the meeting of the senior officers involved in their operation.

"System defenses are fully operational, and all our ships report full tactical readiness. The auto refineries are currently undergoing a final diagnostic check to ensure optimal harvesting rates once we've secured our targets." Arella reported.

"Excellent. Have we identified the primary targets?"

"Yes, sir. We will strike at two systems under Darkiin control that are both rich in hysperil and relatively close to Sol. The Rakool have pledged to attack along with us and thereby further reduce the resistance the Darkiin can muster against us." Another officer reported.

"Do not think for a second that this campaign will be easy. They might be inferior, but the Darkiin have vastly superior numbers, even with the Rakool on our side. Our best tactic is to rapidly produce ships and use crew reinforcements from Hashera to build a rapid military force to combat the Darkiin." Harry warned them.

"And once we do crush them, we'll take all these ships and cut a path through the Alliance all the way to Terra." Arella smirked. It was a future they all looked forward to.

"Quite right. Any other issues we need to address before we begin the tactical planning?"

"Well sir, the crew have been working really hard ever since we've arrived in this sector. It would be a good idea to give them some R&R before the fighting starts." One of the commodores suggested.

"It is a good suggestion. Hermione, contact Earth, and arrange for a suitable location to be provided for our use. Commodore, prepare a fleet-wide announcement that a week long festival will be held two days from now. All interested participants should register before then." Harry grinned.

"The standard festival arrangements?" The man asked.

"Yes. Two days of music, three days of duels and a two day Blood-Ball tournament. Can you construct the necessary buildings in two days?"

"A lot faster than that, sir. We'll have everything ready in time." The man grinned.

* * *

The Earth governments had created a Lantrisi liaison office, so Hermione's request was quickly passed along to the relevant departments, and an hour later, their construction crews descended like a cloud of locusts on a large flat piece of land in the US Midwest.

"We are very grateful for your invitation, your Lordship." Harry was standing with a large detachment of diplomats from various states that he had graciously invited to witness this important part of Lantrisi culture.

"Please, there's no need to stand on ceremony. You can call me Harry." Harry grinned.

"Now gentlemen, the fun is about to start. The first two days will be mostly one long concert, with various groups from across the fleet competing for the title of best band. The winners will have the honor of having their music played on all ships as we go into battle." Harry grinned.

"Won't that make communications difficult?" One man asked.

"Between ourselves, we communicate telepathically. Now, Lantrisi music is split into two general styles. This stage will be where the fans of lokor-isha music will gather, while the stage on the other side of the field will be where the gar'shik music will be performed. Feel free to attend either performance." Harry replied.

A small source of embarrassment for Harry was the fact that Hermione was a gar'shik listener. No one would dare tease Harry in person about the fact, but he was aware of the comments that were floating around the crews.

The two-day concert was a smashing hit, and recordings of the performances were spread across Earth, causing a wave of new musical styles to emerge in human culture as well. As bands tried to get close to the sheer passion and fury of lokor-isha, so did other musicians strive to mimic the elegant, uplifting tones of gar'shik.

* * *

After their experience with Lantrisi music, the diplomats were offered a glimpse in Lantrisi sports, starting with dueling.

This was done in large circular pits, with rows of seat arranged around them, much like old Roman gladiator arenas.

The comparison was quite apt, as the duelers did their best to kill their opponents in the most brutal fashion possible.

"You actually condone this level of violence?" One of the humans turned away with a wince amidst the cheers of the crowd as one of the duelers lost an arm.

"He can grow it back. In fact, I think he's actually turning this match around." Harry shrugged. True enough, the contestant that had his arm hacked off managed to get the upper hand on his opponent as he rammed his dagger in the woman's throat and pinned her on the ground with her face into the dirt.

The judges were quick to declare him the victor, and they both walked out to the medical facility to replenish their blood levels and regenerate in peace.

"I'll give you this. Your people are certainly fond of violence." The British ambassador commented as they watched the final duel taking place. Both duelers were doing all they could to beat the other, and already, the floor around them was slick with their blood.

"We are a predatory species. It was imperative we find ways to vent our desires for violence in order to maintain a stable society." Harry replied.

"That does explain a great deal." The man nodded.

"Ah, finally. The fight is over." True enough, one of the duelers had collapsed from blood loss, and the medics were quick to carry him off before he died from it. The winner was in very poor condition as well, but managed to walk to the medical area on her own power.

"So, the duels are finally over?" The ambassador asked.

"There's one more duel. As the winner of the tournament, she has earned the right to stand against the sponsor of the tournament, which in this case is myself. Once she has recovered, we will fight. If you'll excuse me, I will go and prepare. To give her any less than my best would be to belittle her accomplishment." Harry stood up.

"Can he beat her?" After watching the female blaze through the tournament, the human guests were quite impressed, and they also noticed a lot of betting going on around them.

"The outcome of the match is absolutely certain. Harry will win. What everyone is betting on is how long she will last against him." Hermione replied with a smirk.

"He's that good?" The humans were shocked at this revelation.

"He is a Sector Lord. He's far from the most powerful fighter in the Collective, but he is one of the best. At one point of time he was even the Second in the Order of Death."

Any doubts the humans had in this claim were shattered as the match began thirty minutes later.

* * *

Harry fought the ship captain facing him with all his skill, evading even her best attacks without even a scratch, and cutting through her defenses with brutal efficiency. Still, as the woman could not use Form Dancing, he did not use that ability.

The crowd burst into cheer as the woman, used a desperate feint that ended giving her five inches of kershin in her right lung and grazed her second heart, but the feint was a success as her thrown blade made a shallow cut on Harry's cheek. The wound barely managed to bleed before it closed up again.

A stunned gasp passed through the crowd as that happened.

"She actually managed to draw blood. I daresay some people got very rich about now." Hermione grinned. Drawing blood was a really rare event in these matches, and few bet on them.

Now, while the basic necessities were provided for free to all citizens of the Collective, Lantrisi or not, the Collective still had currency, mostly used to purchase luxury items or special customized weapons, pay for travel on non-military transports, trade with other civilizations and a number of other things.

Lantrisi currency was even used in a few smaller interstellar powers in the Lantrisi universe because of its great stability.

"I didn't expect her to draw blood." Hermione commented once Harry was back in his seat in the VIP section.

"It was a big gamble on her end, but it paid off. If she runs her ship even half as good as she duels, I daresay she'll rise quickly through the ranks." Harry grinned.

* * *

At last, the final event of the festival was set to begin, and the Lantrisi swarmed to the massive arena to witness the Blood Ball tournament.

"Can you explain the game to us?" The human guests looked curiously at the massive field before them. Half a kilometer long and a quarter wide, it was a lot bigger than anything used for human sports.

"Certainly. As you can see, the field is divided into two halves and a semi-circle on each end where the goal is. This is called the guardian circle. Each team is divided into one guardian, two defenders, three chargers and a retriever." Harry began.

"I'll explain each position and the rules associated with it one by one. The guardian is self-explanatory; he guards the goal and tries to prevent the chargers to score a point. Now, he is not allowed to leave the guardian circle, or touch the charger. If he blocks the shot and the ball falls inside the circle, he is allowed to pick it up but he can only pass it to the retriever.

The defenders are the players that try to stop the chargers to get to the goal and their sole restrictions are that they cannot leave their half of the field, they are only allowed to attack a charger one-on-one, and if they get the ball they must pass it to the retriever.

The charger is the player that tries to get past the defending players and score a goal. The ball is a hollow sphere made of polished kershin metal a bit bigger than a hand. Since it's polished, it can be very difficult to get a good grip on it when it's time to throw it. Also, the goal is only an inch wider than the ball, making it very difficult to score a point. Now, the chargers are not allowed to move back, and if they pass the ball, it must be done to a charger ahead of them. Second, only one charger is allowed to enter the guardian circle at any given time.

The final position is the retriever. His task is to retrieve the ball if it falls out of play and pass it to the chargers. If it touches the ground or falls out of the field, only the retrievers are allowed to bring the ball back into play. This can be a risky position, due to the following rule. Chargers cannot take the ball if it touches the ground, but they can take it from the retriever." Harry finally finished explaining the game.

"Let me get this straight. It is perfectly legal to tackle down an opposing player if he carries the ball?" One man asked.

"Completely legal. Weapons are not allowed of course, but other than that it's anything goes in this game. Oh, I almost forgot. The game ends when a team scores ten points. Of course, sometimes it is difficult to score even once, but we'll see how the teams perform." Harry shrugged.

* * *

Blood Ball was every bit as brutal as its name implied, and the players fought each other as much as they played the game, causing cheers every time a player was smashed, tackled or punched into the ground.

True to Harry's prediction, the games stretched across the whole day, with the four teams working hard to be the best teams in the tournament.

The next day was even more brutal, as the teams fought for the first, second and third spot.

It was well over midnight when the final point was made, and the tournament concluded. Again, the award for the top two teams was the honor of having the ships they represented take the point in the upcoming attacks.

* * *

"I take it that everyone is well rested and eager for more action?" Harry greeted his command staff the following day.

"The crews are practically on fire. All ships are running at optimal efficiency." Arella grinned.

"Then it's time we proceeded with the attack. Contact the Rakool." Harry addressed the ship's AI and a moment later, the hologram of a Rakool wearing a rather ornate uniform appeared on one end of the table.

"Admiral, I trust your fleet is prepared for the coming assault?" Harry asked.

"Indeed we are, Lord Storm-eye. We can attack as soon as you give the word." The bird man replied confidently.

"Excellent. Cross the border in one hour. We will strike first and draw their forces to give you an easier time of it." Harry grinned.

"With your aid, the tyranny of the Darkiin will soon end. May your ships bring swift death to all your enemies." The admiral ended the transmission.

"Bring all ships into formation and bring us out of the system. Divide into battle groups on exit and proceed to your objectives." Harry instructed his captains, and as one, the Lantrisi fleet headed out of Sol and towards the Darkiin systems.

* * *

"We are entering the targeted solar system."

"Bring us to subluminal speed and deploy all fighters. Set course for primary Darkiin installations." Arella instructed. The Koraash carrier was designed to be the spearhead of Lantrisi attacks. A massive section of its hull was actually hundreds of remote-controlled fighters that could be deployed as the primary attack wave that would not only harass the enemy, but would also screen the Koraash from attack as it brought its sizable weapons batteries to bear on the enemy. Two dedicated AI served solely for the task of controlling the hundreds of fighters.

"Fleet reports full tactical readiness. Should we give the order to attack?"

"No. Let them make the first move." Arella grinned. She didn't have to wait long, as the comm. officer accepted an incoming transmission a moment later.

"Unknown armada, this world is under the sovereign authority of the Darkiin Alliance. You are to leave at once or we will open fire on your ships." A gorilla-like alien with four arms said that with a vicious sneer.

"Our fleet is here to take control of this system for the Lantrisi Collective. Surrender and your lives will be spared." Arella replied calmly. The Darkiin officer released an angry screech and closed the comm. link. A moment later, the Darkiin defenses opened fire.

"All ships, return fire." Arella smirked as the battle was over before it even began. The Darkiin had little ships in this system, since their fleets were stationed at what their leaders considered more important locations.

"All ships, set up overlapping patrol fields. Report in as soon as you detect Darkiin ships. Status on the refineries?" Arella turned to her subordinates.

"They will arrive in two hours, ma'am. There is a slight problem, though. The planet with the highest amount of hysperil is populated."

"How many people are down there?" Arella asked. With the amount of hysperil and other valuable minerals on that planet, they were going to strip as much as they could from it without destroying it, which would render the world uninhabitable.

"Over one hundred fifty million people. Our scans have determined the colony is only a few generations old."

"Is there another world in the system we can relocate them to?" Arella sighed. When they conquered the system, its inhabitants became their responsibility, and Arella was not about to slaughter millions of civilians if she could simply find them a different home.

"The fifth planet of the system can be made to support them with relatively little work."

"Alright. Begin working on it and have the engineers start constructing habitats. Contact all ships and have them begin deploying their soldier companies to get all inhabitants prepared for evacuation. Inform the refineries on the change of plans and have them begin mining operations in different locations of the system." Arella instructed her crew.

* * *

"This is a most unwelcome complication." Harry sighed as he and Arella discussed the issue in Harry's chambers, which also functioned as his ready room.

"The delay is negligible. We anticipated civilian presence; we just didn't expect their numbers to be so high." Arella replied.

"Well, there are a number of asteroids rich in hysperil in the system, so we'll still be able to begin construction operations within the week. How did the other group and our allies fare?" Harry asked.

"The other group ran into much heavier resistance, and two Akrosa frigates suffered some light damage. The Rakool lost several ships and several more suffered heavy to moderate damage, but they secured their objective as well. They are currently bringing in more reinforcements to help them secure the system."

"Any word on Darkiin retaliation?" Harry continued.

"Long-range sensors reported some scouts, but nothing more than that. Still, we know they have significant military assets, and we can expect a heavy assault in the coming days." Arella replied.

"I agree. Keep everyone on alert. When they come, we'll be ready for them." Harry smirked.


End file.
